The crisis facing the ready-to-wear sector has taken a new victim. All Breton stores of British brand Superdry have closed their doors in recent days. Nine sales locations are concerned: in Brest, Quimper, Lorient, Vannes, Languex, Rennes (two stores) and Saint-Malo (two stores).
Breton stores are owned by the Motherwest company, based in Saint-Grégoire (35) near Rennes. The company also manages the JOTT and Timberland brands. Its network, located mainly in the Great West, consists of about forty stores. Motherwest did not respond to our requests when contacted.
These closures were sudden. “We received an email at 6:34 p.m. on March 1, to tell us that at 7 p.m. that same evening we are closing permanently,” salespeople at a Superdry store in Langueux told Telegram. A similar surprise at a store in downtown Rains, which also closed on March 1, left customers helpless in front of a sign taped to the window. “Thank you to our clients, who were a little more everyday and with whom through their regular visits, for whom we saw their children grow as their visits progressed,” we can read.
Negotiations for the takeover of Superdry
The Superdry brand, like many other big ready-to-wear brands, is facing declining sales. Internationally, the group announced in January that it was exploring “several options for significant cost reductions”, which could include closures and job losses. The brand announced in late December that its results would be weighed down by a “difficult retail market and an unusually mild autumn”. The wholesale trade, for its part, suffered from the decision to cease such activity in the United States.
In early February, managing director Julian Dunkerton said he was exploring the “possibility of making a takeover offer” and that he was “engaged in discussions with potential financial partners with the aim of exploring options (…) that could include a potential offer.” Cash for capital,” Superdry said in a statement.
The Times newspaper also indicated that American fund Sycamore Partners, its compatriot Authentic Brands Group (ABG), owner of Reebok, Quiksilver and high-end British clothing chain Ted Baker would also be interested. The company added that “there is no certainty that any of these options will come to fruition” but that Superdry is expected to save more than £40 million this financial year, up from an initial target of £35 million.
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