Du Soutien Beheer cancels relaunch of McGregor, Gaastra and Adam

By

Shomara Roosblad

Published
Oct 18, 2017

Dutch fashion chains McGregor, Gaastra and Adam, which recently announced plans for a relaunch after their second bankruptcy, have now cancelled these plans, reports Dutch newspaper Het Financieele Dagblad.

Investment fund Du Soutien Beheer, which had been tasked with the relaunch, abandoned the project after discovering that the fashion chain’s problems were worse than anticipated. The fund, which took over the bankrupt fashion chains on September 25, discovered that the administration was not in order and that many suppliers do not want to continue deliveries to the company, according to the newspaper.

As a result of the cancelled relaunch, more than 400 jobs are in jeopardy, including 325 jobs in the Netherlands. “We will ask a third of the staff to stay for as long as possible,” Du Soutien Beheer chief Rens Van de Schoor told the Het Financieele Dagblad. “But for example, the people who design the new collection are no longer needed,” he continued.

McGregor and Gaastra stores will remain open until the fall/winter collection is sold out. Adam brand stores, which depend on McGregor and Gaastra for more than half of its sales, will close.

In 2016 McGregor, Gaastra and Adam dealt with its first bankruptcy, at which point the the Doniger Fashion Group had 75 standalone stores in the Netherlands, Belgium, France and Germany, and 53 located in the Netherlands. The business failure was due to a reported loss of 26 million euros in 2015.

In 2016, after the first bankruptcy, the parent company changed its name from McGregor Fashion Group to Doniger Fashion Group.

McGregor Fashion Group launched in 1993, and had, at its peak, 150 standalone stores in addition to 3,200 points of sale.