Source: Xiaoxiang Morning News, National Business Daily, China Business News, Jiemian News, Jimu News
C&A, a Dutch fast-fashion brand with a history of 100 years, has been tepid in business in China. After the sale of its China business, it also failed to usher in a turnaround.
Recently, C&A's affiliated company Seahouse Yijia Trading Group Co., Ltd. has added a new bankruptcy review information, the applicant is Shanghai Jinheng Legal Consulting Co., Ltd., and the economic court is Shanghai No. 3 Intermediate People's Court.
Xiya Yijia Trading Group Co., Ltd. was established in June 2005, the legal representative is Lu Ruilong, with a registered capital of about 2.413 billion yuan, and is 99.9% owned by Zhongke Tongrong Investment Fund Management (Beijing) Co., Ltd. According to the company's investigation information, the company has a number of information on judgment debtors, consumption restriction orders and judgment defaulters. Lu Ruilong has also been repeatedly restricted from high consumption.
It is important to point out that being filed for bankruptcy review does not necessarily mean that the company will go bankrupt. Bankruptcy review cases refer to applications for review of relevant enterprises to determine whether they are eligible for bankruptcy. Bankruptcy review is the court's review and judgment of whether the debtor meets the bankruptcy conditions to decide whether to initiate bankruptcy proceedings. Bankruptcy review cases are not uncommon, and many enterprises have had new bankruptcy review cases, but they may not necessarily end up in bankruptcy proceedings.
There are only 2 stores in Shanghai and 1 store in Beijing
According to the C&A China official account, in 1841, brothers Clemens and August opened a cloth shop in Snick, a small town in the north of the Netherlands, and officially established the C&A brand. In 1911, C&A expanded from the Netherlands to Germany, opening the first C&A large bag store in Berlin. Since 1972, C&A has opened in France, Switzerland, Luxembourg, Spain, Austria and other countries.
In April 2007, C&A officially entered the Chinese market and opened stores.
Cheap prices and many styles are the impression that many consumers have of C&A. However, similar to the development process of many fast fashion brands, the brand audience has also decreased due to various factors.
In 2020, C&A decided to sell its China business to Zhongke Tongrong Investment Fund Management (Beijing) Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "Zhongke Tongrong"). After the acquisition, C&A China changed its company name from Seawood (China) Commercial Co., Ltd. to Seahouse Trading Group Co., Ltd.
Prior to the sale, C&A had fewer than 70 stores in 22 cities in China. Today, there are even fewer offline stores left. In Shanghai, for example, Dianping showed that the brand was only able to find two stores in Qingpu. Some consumers reported on the Internet that there are few styles in Qingpu stores, but the price can be as low as three folds.
In Beijing, there is currently only one physical store left, located on the first floor of Huiduogang Shopping Center in Chaoyang District, Beijing. According to reports, on April 18, only one or two staff members were patrolling the store, and there were very few customers who shopped. A staff member said that the store will see an increase in traffic on weekends.
Netizen: The price is affordable, but it has become the tears of the times
Some netizens expressed regret over C&A's recent situation. Many consumers cite affordability and a variety of styles as significant advantages of the brand.
According to Jimu News, Mr. Chen, a post-85 Wuhan citizen, said that when he was in college, he often went to C&A in Optics Valley, and later worked, he would also go to C&A in Han Street to shop. Especially when the season changes, there are several pieces or even a dozen pieces to buy, which is very cost-effective and the quality is not bad. "But since then, both stores have closed.
A consumer in Chengdu commented, "The tears of the times are still a drop left." I went to see 3 pieces of 3 discounts, and I saw that it was the previous discount, and I asked, but the clerk said don't care, it seems to be really Buddhist. I bought several pieces of dolls, all of which were of good quality and at a good price. ”
In contrast, brands such as Uniqlo, ZARA, and H&M, which have survived the fast fashion competition, have all adopted similar strategies without exception: frequent co-branding with well-known IPs and brands, strengthening the layout of e-commerce, and developing mid-to-high-end brands. C&A, which did not seize these opportunities, could only be reduced to "tears of the times".