The Commercial Court of Lille pronounced the liquidation of the clothing brand.
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Camaïeu draws the curtain. The Lille Commercial Court pronounced the liquidation of the female clothing brand on Wednesday, September 28, two months after its receivership. The 511 stores of the chain founded in 1984 will close their doors on Saturday 1 er at 11 p.m. The 2,600 employees, including those of the head office and the warehouse located in Roubaix (North), will be dismissed by the end of October.
It took three hours of hearing and deliberation to the judges to decide on this complicated file which, shortly before its exam, took a political turn. As a last resort, the Bordeaux businessman Michel Ohayon, founder of the Bordeaux real estate property (FIB), shareholder of Camaïeu since his recovery at the court of the court in 2020, and Wilhelm Hubner, CEO of Hermione People Brands, subsidiary of The FIB responsible for its activities in the distribution, had requested the help of the Ministry of Industry.
Both hoped to obtain a loan of 48 million euros to complete a continuation plan supposed to save 1,900 jobs and 300 stores. In vain. “Not realistic,” decided Bercy, refusing to pay this repayable advance. At the Dam of Xavier Bertrand, President (LR) of the Hauts-de-France region, who, Wednesday, September 27, opened up to the Prime Minister, Elisabeth Borne, so that the State “takes a step”. The mayor (various right) of Roubaix, Guillaume Delbar, had also pleaded for this solution, by evoking the “destiny of 2,600 families”.
“Fortunately that Bercy refused”
Bercy held out, refusing to finance Mr. Ohayon’s continuation plan, which, in total, required 79.2 million euros for the next eight months. The company had already benefited from “40 million euros in public aid, including 20 million euros in direct grants,” said Roland Lescure, Minister Delegate for Industry, Wednesday, September 27, to explain this veto.
“But, fortunately Bercy refused! It would have been a pure scandal,” exclaims a lawyer from a creditor present at the hearing (the people mentioned whose name does not appear to keep the anonymity). Because, before the judges, Mr. Ohayon promised to inject cash by making the brand’s head office and warehouse buy up for an amount of 14 million euros by his holding company, while specifying that these assets could be Subsequently valued and sold for an amount of “55 million to 60 million euros”.
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