Children’s clothing brand Catimini is set to close 44 stores in France, Belgium, and Luxembourg by December, as the result of “losses suffered by the company”, French financial newspaper Les Echos reports.
The French brand, which was acquired by the IDKIDS groups in 2020, says that it will work to reduce the impact of the closures on its 89 employees. The company had been experiencing “significant difficulties” for several years before its purchase by IDKIDS, a conglomerate of 18 children’s clothing brands.
“On 18 July, the management team presented its recovery plan to staff representatives,” the company said in a press release. It said the store closures will allow it “both to reduce the losses suffered by the company and to allow, in the future, to relaunch the brand.”
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In Belgium, Catimini operates locations in Charleroi and Liège. The company once had a significant presence in the country, with four locations and a dozen multi-brand stores. The majority have since closed their doors. Other locations in the country now operate under the OKAIDI name.
Catimini blamed the closures on the “global economic context”, notably the cost of materials, energy, inflation, and new consumption habits. The brand will now reduce its offering and work at transferring its staff between brands.
