J. Mendel in court over unpaid bills

J. Mendel seems to have more trouble paying its bills than a father who keeps missing his child support payments. Last year, the company found itself in hot water over its unpaid retainer fees to Karla Otto for press, now they are in court again over unpaid expenses regarding a lease it cancelled about a year ago.

WWD reported that in a standard filing of confession, John Georgiades of Stallion Inc., J.Mendel’s majority investor, admitted Monday to owing real estate firm The Arsenal Co. 1.1 million dollars related to the lease of an entire floor in a Midtown building here, where the brand previously kept its headquarters.

Georgiades said J. Mendel left the space last year after having signed a ten year lease in 2013. The 27,171-square-foot space came with a price tag of 40 dollars per square foot, putting rent in the 1 million dollar range.

When J. Mendel announced their plans to leave the space in 2016, they agreed to an early termination fee, which Arsenal agreed to collect in monthly installments of 100,000. However, only four installments came, the last of which was received in May 2017, leading Arsenal to pursue legal action.

While there has been no final legal action regarding how the amount should be paid, Georgiades' confession means that there will most likely be an easy means of legal recourse in Arsenal being paid.

Arsenal could not immediately be reached for comment.

J. Mendel's other lawsuits include one with The New York Times over 28,000 dollars in unpaid advertising fees, one with DNA Model Management for 60,000 dollars in unpaid model fees, another with Er Fur Trading Corp. for 107,500 for animal fur skins, and a lawsuit with e-commerce management company Acadaca LLC for 60,000 dollars.

In 2015, J. Mendel reported 30 million dollars in sales generated by ready-to-wear, accessories and couture, but the brand seems to have ceased both their couture and accessories collections.

It appears the company could be waiting in the wings for an investor to swoop in and save them and absolve them of their financial troubles. However, between the mounting legal actions against them, they would have trouble finding a buyer.