Commercial court places Scotch & Soda France in receivership

The French operations of fashion brand Scotch & Soda were placed in receivership on November 2 by the Paris Commercial Court, at the request of Belgian group Alain Broekaert (GAB), which acquired the French subsidiary in May 2023. The procedure involves a six-month observation period.

GAB France Retail, which brings together the 24 shops of the Dutch brand in France, was created in May 2023 by the Belgian distributor GAB after it took over the French Scotch & Soda business from the American Bluestar Alliance, which acquired the global brand in March 2023. According to several press reports, Scotch & Soda has decided to close all its shops in the United Kingdom (4 units) and has closed several shops in the United States since this spring.

In France, where it employs 117 people, Scotch & Soda has been facing difficulties for several months. In addition to a decline in sales in the autumn, it is facing substantial operating losses and a backlog of unpaid rents.

The GAB Group filed for receivership with the intention to build a recovery plan by closing loss-making stores, and therefore staying in control. A sale is not being considered at this time.

Founded in 1985 in the Netherlands, Scotch & Soda has around 250 stores worldwide and 7,000 multi-brand retailers. In the 2021/22 financial year, it generated total sales of 342.5 million euros, including almost 12 million euros in France.