Paris - Dutch fashion brand C&A, established in France for over 50 years and which has been restructuring its store network for several years, has just announced a new project that puts more than 300 jobs at risk. Announced to its employees on March 14, the new workforce reduction plan has not gone down well with the unions, particularly the CGT (General Confederation of Trade Unions), which deplores in a press release a "progressive dismantling" that has led to the elimination of around 800 jobs in recent years.

"C&A is carrying out job protection plans (PSEs) like it would carry out sales periods," the union denounces. According to the CGT, this would be the "8th PSE," which comes two years after the February 2023 closure of two iconic Parisian stores (Rivoli and Haussmann), which laid off "140 employees, 28 of whom were reassigned," Sandrine Di Mambro, a CGT union representative, told AFP.

"Some colleagues have undergone three redundancy plans" and have been moved from store to store. "It's psychologically very hard," she emphasizes, citing "the anxiety of not knowing if tomorrow there will be another [restructuring]." Having worked at C&A for over 30 years, she has seen numerous redundancy plans, but the one announced on March 14 "is much more significant than the others," she worries. In fact, it could affect "a maximum" of 324 people, management told AFP on Friday.

To "improve its competitiveness" in a declining ready-to-wear market, C&A is optimizing its network of directly owned stores and plans to close 24 that are experiencing "structural difficulties," it explained. Furthermore, all 57 of the brand's "corners" (points of sale hosted by other brands) in France are expected to suffer the same fate "since the partnerships with the buyers Intermarché, Carrefour, and Auchan could not be renewed."

Finally, with the volume of products sold set to decrease, the distribution center located in Seine-et-Marne, as well as its workforce, will be affected by the restructuring project. Over the "coming weeks," "a very comprehensive social support package will be negotiated" with employee representative organizations, including redeployment proposals and support measures, management assured.

"Securing the future"

This plan aims to "ensure the brand's future in a French clothing market that continues to deteriorate and in which C&A France is experiencing difficulties despite previous adjustments," according to the company, which currently has 100 stores and 1,500 employees in France. Like others, it is trying to withstand the severe crisis that has hit the French ready-to-wear sector for several years.

Camaïeu, Kookaï, Gap France, Don't Call Me Jennyfer, André, San Marina, Minelli, Pimkie, Comptoir des Cotonniers, Princesse Tam Tam, Kaporal, IKKS... Many well-known brands in France and in city centers have suffered the consequences. It was fatal for some brands, which were liquidated, such as Camaïeu in September 2022, with the layoff of 2,100 employees, which had a strong impact.

These brands have suffered from an explosive cocktail: pandemic, inflation, rising energy prices, raw materials, rents and wages, as well as competition from second-hand goods and, more recently, "hyper fast fashion."

This "ephemeral" fashion with very low prices and very frequently updated collections, which is imported into Europe via Asian platforms and of which Shein is the symbol, is nibbling away more and more market share in France every day.

It further destabilizes historic brands, such as C&A, founded in 1841 by two brothers, Clemens and August, with a linen and cotton business (C&A Brenninkmeijer). Today, C&A offers low-cost clothing for women, men, and children in its 1,300 stores across 17 European countries, and employs 25,000 people.(AFP)

This article was translated to English using an AI tool.