Celio Men’s Fashion Chain Faces Crisis, Moroccan Stores’ Fate Uncertain

The founders of the brand, the Grosman brothers Laurent and Marc, requested on Monday, June 22, 2020, "to place the company Celio France as well as its parent company Celio International under the protection of the commercial court with the opening of safeguard procedures". And for good reason, they were unable to "find an agreement" with their banking partners to overcome the cash flow crisis facing the brand.

This procedure should allow Celio to "preserve its cash flow in the coming months in order to give itself time in the resumption of commercial activity and to adapt the transformation already undertaken" in 2019.

This cash flow crisis is due to the impact of the coronavirus on Celio’s business. "The sudden closure for two months of its 1,585 stores [...] resulted in a loss of turnover for the group of nearly 100 million euros between March and May 2020," the brand explains.

The company has stores in 46 countries, including Morocco. Wouldn’t its stores be experiencing the same difficulties? Since the Moroccan authorities had ordered the closure of businesses in the kingdom since the entry into force of the state of health emergency and confinement in March. Pending deconfinement, businesses have recently been authorized to reopen but at 50%.