Princesse tam tam and Comptoir des Cotonniers heading for receivership
The move that will make it easier for the two chains to go into receivership was made by Fast Retailing in September 2024, when it decided to merge the two businesses into a single corporate entity, under the Fast Retailing France company. The latter doesn't include the lucrative business of Uniqlo in France, whose 30 stores are run by a European holding company based in London.
With the reorganisation carried out two years ago, Princesse tam tam deployed a redundancy plan that led to the closure of 27 out of 69 stores, for a loss of 84 out of 235 jobs, while Comptoir des Cotonniers closed 28 out of 67 stores and slashed 101 out of 272 jobs. The chains are currently operating a total of nearly 90 stores, approximately 50 for Princesse tam tam and about 40 for Comptoir des Cotonniers.
In spring 2024, in an effort to revive their fortunes, the chains, led by Kunii San, announced they were cutting retail prices by approximately 30%, in order to attract a broader clientèle, notably 25 to 35-year-olds. They also forged closer links with Uniqlo, dropping joint capsule collections and opening shop-in-shops within Uniqlo stores.
Comptoir des Cotonniers, which became part of Fast Retailing exactly 20 years ago, was an extremely popular brand in the 2000s and 2010s in France, characterised by a casual-chic style and adverts chiefly featuring mothers and daughters. The brand was founded in 1995 by the Elicha family, opening its first stores in the Toulouse area.
Princesse tam tam was created 10 years earlier, in 1985, designed by the sisters Loumia and Shama Hiridjee. It carved out a niche for itself in the French fashion landscape with its brightly coloured underwear and swimwear featuring successful prints, taking a sideways step from classic French lace items.
Another two fashion chains active in the French retail sector are therefore adding their names to the list of defaults, following the first tremor caused by Camaïeu going into liquidation in 2022. Recently, Jennyfer has liquidated most of its assets, as did Café Coton, while Naf Naf and André have both been placed in receivership.
By initiating these proceedings, Fast Retailing has made the decision to no longer give financial support to Princesse tam tam and Comptoir des Cotonniers, and to stop feeding them cash. However, the group is doing extremely well on a global scale. In H1 of fiscal 2024/25, its net income jumped 19.2% to reach ¥233.5 billion (€1.4 billion). Revenue in the period grew by 12% to ¥1.790 trillion (€10.7 billion).
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Fashion Network
4 hours ago
- Fashion Network
Nay Affords on the art of making denim unique and desirable
With the ease of communication offered by social networks, a certain renaissance of individual enterprise has been observed in the fashion sector since the Covid-19 pandemic: in the footsteps of 17th-century seamstresses, designers are launching their businesses without the help of investors and managing to set up a viable business. Such is the case of Ornella Moreira, known as Nayaroz on social networks, a young designer based in the Paris region. In 2020, she launched Nay Affords (French for "Nay can afford it"), a brand known for its customized jeans inspired by streetwear.
Fashion Network
4 hours ago
- Fashion Network
Eyewear e-tailer Mia Burton merges with Lipari, forecasts €23.7 million revenue in 2025
Mia Burton, an international e-tailer specialised in high-end sunglasses and eyeglasses founded in 2022, has announced it has merged by incorporation with Lipari, an eyewear and optical products retailer set up in Palermo, Sicily, over 50 years ago, which recently opened a new store in Milan. The goals of the operation are for the partners to boost their omnichannel business, strengthen the group structure, and create synergies between online and offline retail. Mia Burton is set to consolidate its online presence and international footprint through a data-driven approach, while Lipari will continue to concentrate on physical retail with its selection of premium brands and sector expertise. Mia Burton and Lipari's joint goals include scaling operations and logistics, and increasing product customisation by sharing customer data and solutions. 'In a sector like eyewear that, unlike other fashion and luxury sectors, continues to grow chiefly in the digital realm, the new entity is preparing to develop different business lines, enhancing complementary skills within a single organisation. Pursuing this operating strategy, the group is aiming for revenue of €23.7 million in 2025,' said Mia Burton and Lipari in a press release. Mia Burton will contribute its expertise in international e-tail and premium brand management. The site is deployed in five languages – English, Italian, French, German, and Spanish – and is active virtually worldwide. Its main markets are the USA, the UK, and northern Europe, while Canada and Australia as emerging markets. Following the merger, Mia Burton intends to pursue its internationalisation path, opening new logistics hubs in the USA and Europe, and expanding its e-tail business to new markets such as the Arabian peninsula. In 2025, notably in Q2, Mia Burton has stepped up its efforts in Italy, posting 99% growth on an annual basis. 'We are not chasing an ego project or short-term revenue. In order to become a significant force, the most important thing is to build a solid project, and a coherent one. We are imagining a path unlike that of a cash-burning start-up,' said Carlo Alberto Lipari, CEO of Mia Burton. 'The merger with Lipari realises our vision of a business unit structure that multiplies existing synergies and enables us to tap new opportunities. Although Italy is a priority, we will adopt a gradual approach, since e-tail penetration in the optical sector in Italy has always been slower than in other countries. Precisely for this reason, our online focus on the Italian market continues to go hand in hand with traditional retail, and we are constantly searching for high-profile locations in [Italy's] main cities,' he added. Lipari said that the group will continue to extend its retail footprint with new openings in Italy, focusing on the in-store experience and a direct relationship with international brands, as shown by the recent limited-edition collaboration with French brand Peter & May. Mia Burton, in addition to consolidating its position as a multi-brand platform for high-end eyewear, will focus on selling its proprietary line of progressive lenses, Mia Burton Vision. Mia Burton currently sells 65 brands, from major luxury names such as Cartier, Gucci, Saint Laurent, Balenciaga, Bottega Veneta (by Kering Eyewear), Prada and Miu Miu (by Luxottica), to niche brands such as Jacques Marie Mage, Chrome Hearts, Cutler & Gross and Kuboraum, as well as independent brands with a cult following like Peter & May, Garrett Leight, and Leight, and iconic eyewear brands like Ray-Ban, Persol and Oakley.
Fashion Network
4 hours ago
- Fashion Network
French lingerie on display in London
After New York in August 2024, French lingerie is heading to London's Ladbroke Hall on July 14 for a one-day event organized by Promincor - Lingerie Française, the association for the promotion of the corsetry industry, and DEFI - Comité de Développement et de Promotion de l'Habillement. The event will bring together buyers, media, and influencers to showcase French know-how. Eight French lingerie brands will be taking part in the event: Aubade, Chantelle, Chantelle X, Empreinte, Lise Charmel, Louisa Bracq, Maison Lejaby, and Simone Pérèle. On this occasion, they will unveil their spring-summer 2026 lingerie and swimwear collections in an atmosphere claimed to be "intimate and refined." The day will open with a "tea time", encouraging authentic exchanges between brands and influencers. A scenographic showroom will allow visitors to discover the pieces in a carefully designed setting before a lingerie fashion show that will highlight the wealth of styles, cuts, and inspirations specific to each brand. According to a Kantar study carried out for the Salon International de la Lingerie and the Fédération de la Maille, de la Lingerie et du Balnéaire, the French women's lingerie market represented 2.08 billion euros between January and October 2024.
