The crisis did not leave the fashion industry unaffected either. The sector is suffering from high inflation – in February it reached 8% across Europe – and economic uncertainty caused by the war in Ukraine along with the ensuing disruptions in supply chains. Even the home of fashion, France, was not spared. While luxury brands such as Chanel and Louis Vuitton are still in the bull market, in ready-to-wear, also known as pret-à-porter, bankruptcies are on the rise. While fashion chains are suffering from the current crisis, they have not been adapting to market trends for years. Only some were able to go a step further by introducing innovative ideas.

French pret-à-porter chains in bankruptcy include shoemaker André, founded in 1896, and women’s brands Camaïeu and Kookaï. “Our brand was very successful, we had over 300 stores in about 10 countries,” Jennifer Cohen Solal, Kookaï’s marketing director, told DW. “But when the French group Vivarte took us over in 1996, things took a turn for the worse.” While other brands adapted to the market, we simply survived. Our customers gradually lost interest.” With Kookaï the French company Vivarte has now focused on three countries, France, Spain and Switzerland, gradually leaving the 120 branches to their fate. When the Australian company Magi took over the brand in 2017, Kookaï had already gone through a restructuring phase with a second to follow in 2021.

According to Philippe Moati, professor of economics at Paris Cité University and founder of market research institute ObSoCo, high inflation and declining consumer spending power are the “death blow” in a long line of problems for pret-à-porter companies . “Even before the current crisis, France’s fashion stores suffered from the months-long protests of the yellow vest movement for more social justice in November 2018, during which shoppers were reluctant to buy, just as at the beginning of the pandemic the 2020 and the lockdowns,” he tells DW.

Fast fashion has changed the market

“Also France has a huge sales area, so the market is more than saturated and since the law changed in 2017 allowing year-round discounts, competition has increased in particular,” says Moati. Zilda Menviel, director of the economic observatory of the Parisian fashion school “Institut Français de la Mode”, remembers that France was very strong in the ready-to-wear sector. “These chains had replaced small boutiques as the main points of sale in the 1980s and peaked by 2010 or even 2015,” he notes in an interview with DW. The chains are under further pressure from second-hand clothing sales sites such as the Lithuanian platform Vinted.

The so-called “fast fashion” has shaken the waters of the clothing industry that constantly reproduces clothes according to trends. “The Chinese company Shein in particular is a major online competitor that offers clothing in all sizes,” notes Menviel. The fashion expert finds this trend worrying. “Every purchase leaves a footprint and young people need to know how harmful fast fashion is to the environment.” This trend is heavily criticized due to the high consumption of resources and the sometimes very questionable working conditions.

Sustainable fashion is the future of the clothing industry

Michel Réseguier adds to all this that the pandemic and telecommuting have led to fashion losing its identity even more. The bankruptcy consultant has been supporting companies in the industry since 1996. “Until 2019, no one wore a tie to the office but a shirt, now they work from home in a simple T-shirt,” he told DW. For him the ready-to-wear chains must accept that the volume of the market is decreasing.

But some chains are doing well by introducing innovative ideas, according to Yann Rivolant, president of the Women’s Association of Prêt-à-Porters. “Companies like Loom and Bonne Gueule that produce their fashion in a sustainable way are successful,” he confesses to DW. “Also, those who show creativity and have built a good online image do well.” He points out that a hybrid model would help clothing chains, such as encouraging customers to book products online but pick them up in-store or organize in-store events.

According to the marketing director of Kookaï Solal, this chain is planning something similar. “We want to boost e-commerce but not more than 15% of our sales.” Solal highlights that online advertising has become much more expensive due to the European data protection rules RGPD, which have been in force since 2018. The aim, as she states, is to strengthen the brand’s presence on social media in order to focus on their main clientele: women between 25-35 years old.