The famous manufacturer of supermarket trolleys Caddie, who declared himself in default on Monday, was placed in receivership on Tuesday, January 4. The company has a month and a half to find a buyer and save its 140 jobs in Alsace.
“The court returns the case to February 22, hoping to have a solution by that date with a buyer for the company Caddy”, said the president of the company, Stéphane Dedieu, after the closed hearing held before the commercial chamber of the judicial court of Saverne (Bas-Rhin).
“We’re pressed for time because the company needs cash to keep going, so it’s important that the process be quick”, added the man who, who joined Caddie in the early 1990s as a salesperson, took over the company in 2014 after a previous receivership. “Currently I have no lead, but the procedure is just starting”, recognized Mr. Dedieu, calling for a buyer “Industrial” for this niche market and boasting “A great brand, great products and involved employees”.
“The state of society is really catastrophic”
For his part, reassured that the salaries for December will finally be paid, Luc Strohmenger, CFTC secretary of the Social and Economic Committee (CSE), wants priority to be given to “Job maintenance” on the now unique production site in Dettwiller (Bas-Rhin).
“The objective is to find a buyer as quickly as possible because the state of the company is really catastrophic. The objective is to maintain employment as long as possible “, insisted the lawyer of the CSE, Hervé Bertrand, evoking seven million euros of debts just with the suppliers. “For me it is obvious that a beautiful house like Caddy will inevitably attract an industrialist”, Stéphane Dedieu said on RMC before the court hearing.
The company, based in Dettwiller (Bas-Rhin), in Alsace, declared itself in default on Monday due to an accumulation of difficulties which have exhausted its cash flow. The company, called Les Ateliers Réunis Caddie, which invented the metal trolley for supermarkets in 1928, has already undergone two legal reorganizations, in 2012 and 2014. It has been 70% owned since 2018 by the Polish Damix, who cut fifty jobs in 2020.