France: Number of bankruptcies in apparel decreases in Q1 2025

A clothing store. Credits: Image Ron Lach via Pexels. In the first quarter of 2025, the number of bankruptcies in the apparel sector in France has decreased. According to a study published on Wednesday by the Altares Group, the number of stores in default dropped by 15 percent. While the wholesale trade of textiles and apparel saw its number of companies in financial difficulty decrease by 19 percent, its manufacturing sector recorded a decrease of 22 percent. Nevertheless, 17,845 bankruptcies were recorded in the first quarter of 2025, across all sectors, a level well above the average for Q1 in over 15 years (15,300), according to the study. The Altares Group also specifies that the number of jobs threatened has increased to 71,000, "unprecedented since the 2009 crisis." Overall, Thierry Millon, Head of Research at Altares, indicates that "this first quarter has not yet shown a decline in the number of business failures, but the storm is moving away even if persistent clouds invite us to remain cautious and patient." He adds: "As expected, entrepreneurial insolvencies have been limited for six months around 68,000. A stability supported at the beginning of the year by the smallest companies with less than three employees. The largest, with more than 100 employees, are experiencing a sharp deterioration that weighs heavily on employment. Although the overall figure remains very high, several activities are turning green, particularly in B2C." The Head of Research recalls that in an already complicated political, economic, and geopolitical context, the American president's announcements earlier this week further disturb the economic outlook. According to Thierry Millon, it is too early to precisely measure the effects, but we already know that this tariff war will force leaders to correct their revenue, investment, employment, and therefore financial performance forecasts. "The supply chain will be challenged, and cash flows will be under great pressure," adds the director before concluding: "For several months, the volume of bankruptcies has stabilized at a very high level; this is also the case for payment delays calculated by Altares, which, after rapidly increasing by two days in 2024, seemed to be able to maintain themselves around 14 days. A gradual decline in delays and payment defaults was therefore conceivable for 2025. But without yet completely giving up on this hope, the international context is changing the game (...)" This article was translated to English using an AI tool. FashionUnited uses AI language tools to speed up translating (news) articles and proofread the translations to improve the end result. This saves our human journalists time they can spend doing research and writing original articles. Articles translated with the help of AI are checked and edited by a human desk editor prior to going online. If you have questions or comments about this process email us at info@fashionunited.com

Apr 10, 2025 - 14:57

France: Number of bankruptcies in apparel decreases in Q1 2025

A clothing store. *Credits: Image Ron Lach via Pexels.*

In the first quarter of 2025, the number of bankruptcies in the apparel sector in France has decreased. According to a study published on Wednesday by the Altares Group, the number of stores in default dropped by 15 percent.

While the wholesale trade of textiles and apparel saw its number of companies in financial difficulty decrease by 19 percent, its manufacturing sector recorded a decrease of 22 percent. Nevertheless, 17,845 bankruptcies were recorded in the first quarter of 2025, across all sectors, a level well above the average for Q1 in over 15 years (15,300), according to the study. The Altares Group also specifies that the number of jobs threatened has increased to 71,000, "unprecedented since the 2009 crisis."

Overall, Thierry Millon, Head of Research at Altares, indicates that "this first quarter has not yet shown a decline in the number of business failures, but the storm is moving away even if persistent clouds invite us to remain cautious and patient." He adds: "As expected, entrepreneurial insolvencies have been limited for six months around 68,000. A stability supported at the beginning of the year by the smallest companies with less than three employees. The largest, with more than 100 employees, are experiencing a sharp deterioration that weighs heavily on employment. Although the overall figure remains very high, several activities are turning green, particularly in B2C."

The Head of Research recalls that in an already complicated political, economic, and geopolitical context, the American president's announcements earlier this week further disturb the economic outlook. According to Thierry Millon, it is too early to precisely measure the effects, but we already know that this tariff war will force leaders to correct their revenue, investment, employment, and therefore financial performance forecasts.

"The supply chain will be challenged, and cash flows will be under great pressure," adds the director before concluding: "For several months, the volume of bankruptcies has stabilized at a very high level; this is also the case for payment delays calculated by Altares, which, after rapidly increasing by two days in 2024, seemed to be able to maintain themselves around 14 days. A gradual decline in delays and payment defaults was therefore conceivable for 2025. But without yet completely giving up on this hope, the international context is changing the game (...)"

This article was translated to English using an AI tool.