Bad news. A new ready-to-wear brand files for bankruptcy in France and throughout Europe. The brand failed to overcome its financial difficulties. We’ll explain it to you.
For some time now, the textile industry sector has been in great difficulty. Many ready-to-wear brands are going out of business. For others, even if their fate is not yet sealed, the future seems more than uncertain. This is the case of the Camaïeu brand for example, which was placed in receivership in September 2022, leading to the closure of more than 500 stores.
Celio, Naf Nas, Gap, From the same to the same… these brands are struggling to attract customers. Directly competing with fast fashion which offers more choice and reduced prices, these ready-to-wear brands are in great difficulty. And the Covid crisis has not helped anything since store activity fell by 9% compared to 2019. And this Thursday, May 16, 2024, we learned that a new brand is a victim of the crisis. It’s about Spirit.
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Esprit files for bankruptcy in Europe
This Wednesday, May 15, 2024, Esprit announced that it had filed for bankruptcy, for all its activities in Europe. In reality, this sad news concerns six other German companies in the group. The group is now banking on restructuring to improve its situation. Thus, the brand indicated that it hoped that this procedure (opened before the court of Düsseldorf in Germany), would make it possible to “reorganize finances and treasury”.
The group clarified that “several potential investors have expressed interest in a strategic partnership.” The brand also explained in complete transparency what all these financial difficulties were linked to. “In recent years, subsidiaries have had to face extremely high costs due to inflation, interest rates and energy prices, the after-effects of the coronavirus and the consequences of international conflicts,” Esprit said.
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From charybdis to scylla
This sad news is not the first, however. In fact, Esprit’s subsidiaries located in Switzerland and Belgium already filed for bankruptcy last March and April. And a third of the brand’s workforce had already been eliminated and 100 points of sale had closed after the first wave of Covid.
As a reminder, the Esprit brand was founded in 1968 in San Francisco by Douglas and Susie Tompkins, an American hippie couple. They are also the ones who created The North Face brand. At the time, they sold their clothes by traveling around California in a Volkswagen minibus. The brand is very present in Germany and Hong Kong. Before the crisis, its annual turnover amounted to 3 billion euros. The brand was present in more than 40 countries through 770 boutiques and 15,150 points of sale. A very impressive success which is now only a distant memory…
Passionate about women’s news, Agathe has been deciphering the latest trends for aufeminin since 2022. Her favorite areas? Psychology, nutrition and well-being advice, without forgetting the tips…