Budapest Post

Cum Deo pro Patria et Libertate
Budapest, Europe and world news

No company is safe from Covid-19: the 6 luxury brands filing for bankruptcy

No company is safe from Covid-19: the 6 luxury brands filing for bankruptcy

Which brands has Covid-19 shut down? More than you think, with many of the most prestigious, including Neiman Marcus and Lord & Taylor, filing for bankruptcy after more than a century

It will not have escaped your attention that businesses are struggling at the moment. Among them, luxury brand after luxury brand is filing for bankruptcy after being hit by widespread belt tightening. For a lot of companies, particularly those that rely on brick and mortar retail, Covid-19 has only compounded what was already a grim situation.

Of course, filing for bankruptcy and actually going out of business are different things, and other companies are just hoping to buy time to get themselves back on their feet.

Here are some of the biggest luxury victims of the pandemic so far.


A Brooks Brothers ensemble.


The most classic of American men’s tailoring brands, Brooks Brothers, filed for bankruptcy in early July. Over the brand’s incredible 202-year history, it has dressed stars from Will Smith to Andy Warhol, provided the costumes for dozens of well-known films and TV shows such as Mad Men and dressed numerous presidents, including Abraham Lincoln and Barack Obama.

It is now owned by Italian businessman Claudio Del Vecchio, the son of Luxottica eyewear billionaire Leonardo Del Vecchio, who is trying to sell it. Brooks Brothers was already struggling before the pandemic, affected by the increasing trend towards less formal dressing, which has only been exacerbated in the era of lockdowns and Zoom.


Lord & Taylor's flagship store on 5th Avenue in Manhattan, New York City in 2018.


That other incredibly high profile casualty of the pandemic, US retail giant Neiman Marcus, is even older than Brooks Brothers at a prestigious 113 years. The company, which also owns retail brands including Bergdorf Goodman and luxury e-commerce site Mytheresa, was already suffering thanks to a debt of around US$4 billion it was required to service, which was costing the company about US$300 million per year.

Along similar lines, Lord & Taylor, the US’s oldest department store chain with a history dating back to 1826, filed for bankruptcy in August.

Among younger brands, celebrity favourite Sies Marjan, beloved by the likes of Beyoncé and Jennifer Lopez, closed its doors in June after just five years in business. Owned by Dutch designer Sander Lak, the former design director of Dries Van Noten, it had made a name for itself with bold, social media-friendly pieces in a daringly bright and broad colour palette.


Centric Brands Inc., which filed for bankruptcy in May, will carry on under the new ownership of a group of private equity firms. The company, which recently bought Zac Posen, creates products under licence for more than 100 brands, including Tommy Hilfiger, Under Armour, Calvin Klein, Nautica, Kate Spade, Frye, Jessica Simpson, Timberland, Hervé Léger and Michael Kors.


Tokyo’s Renown, which owns brands including D’Urban and Arnold Palmer, went into liquidation in November. The company entered bankruptcy proceedings in May, but was unable to turn its business around, declaring 13.9 billion yen (US$133 million) in liabilities in its bankruptcy filing.

Majority owned by China’s Shandong Ruyi since 2010, a diverse company that also owns Bally, Aquascutum and SMCP, as well as being China’s largest textile manufacturer, Renown had been struggling for a while as it failed to adapt to the e-commerce era and to sufficiently address the growing China market, recording a 6.7 billion yen (US$65 million) net loss last year.

AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Russian Research Vessel 'Yantar' Tracked Mapping Europe’s Subsea Cables, Raising Security Alarms
Global Cruise Industry Posts Dramatic Comeback with 34.6 Million Passengers in 2024
U.S. Demands Brussels Scrutinize Digital Rules to Prevent Bias Against American Tech
Private Equity’s Fundraising Surge Triggers Concern of European Market Shake-Out
Tokyo’s Jimbōchō Named World’s Coolest Neighbourhood for 2025
European Officials Fear Trump May Shift Blame for Ukraine War onto EU
The Personality Rights Challenge in India’s AI Era
Italy Considers Freezing Retirement Age at 67 to Avert Scheduled Hike
Italian City to Impose Tax on Visiting Dogs Starting in 2026
Study Finds No Safe Level of Alcohol for Dementia Risk
Trump Says Ukraine Can Fully Restore Borders with NATO Backing
Europe Signals Stronger Support for Taiwan at Major Taipei Defence Show
Germany Weighs Excluding France from Key European Fighter Jet Programme
Cyberattack Disrupts Check-in and Boarding Systems at Major European Airports
Björn Borg Breaks Silence: Memoir Reveals Addiction, Shame and Cancer Battle
When Extremism Hijacks Idealism: How the Baader-Meinhof Gang Emerged and Fell
JWST Data Brings TRAPPIST-1e Closer to Earth-Like Habitability
Trump Orders $100,000 Fee on H-1B Visas and Launches ‘Gold Card’ Immigration Pathway
France’s Looming Budget Crisis and Political Fracture Raise Fears of Becoming Europe’s “Sick Man”
Three Russian MiG-31 Jets Breach Estonian Airspace in ‘Unprecedentedly Brazen’ NATO Incident
European manufacturers against ban on polluting cars: "The industry may collapse"
Turkish car manufacturer Togg Enters German Market with 5-Star Electric Sedan and SUV to Challenge European EV Brands
Christian Brueckner Released from German Prison after Serving Unrelated Sentence
World’s Longest Direct Flight China Eastern to Launch 29-Hour Shanghai–Buenos Aires Direct Flight via Auckland in December
New OpenAI Study Finds Majority of ChatGPT Use Is Personal, Not Professional
The conservative right spreads westward: a huge achievement for 'Alternative for Germany' in local elections
Pope Leo Warns of Societal Crisis Over Mega-CEO Pay, Citing Tesla’s Proposed Trillion-Dollar Package
Poland Green-Lights NATO Deployment in Response to Major Russian Drone Incursion
U.S. and China Agree on Framework to Shift TikTok to American Ownership
Le Pen Tightens the Pressure on Macron as France Edges Toward Political Breakdown
Czech Republic signs €1.34 billion contract for Leopard 2A8 main battle tanks with delivery from 2028
Penske Media Sues Google Over “AI Overviews,” Claiming It Uses Journalism Without Consent and Destroys Traffic
Indian Student Engineers Propose “Project REBIRTH” to Protect Aircraft from Crashes Using AI, Airbags and Smart Materials
One in Three Europeans Now Uses TikTok, According to the Chinese Tech Giant
Could AI Nursing Robots Help Healthcare Staffing Shortages?
NATO Deploys ‘Eastern Sentry’ After Russian Drones Violate Polish Airspace
The New Life of Novak Djokovic
German police raid AfD lawmaker’s offices in inquiry over Chinese payments
Volkswagen launches aggressive strategy to fend off Chinese challenge in Europe’s EV market
France Erupts in Mass ‘Block Everything’ Protests on New PM’s First Day
Poland Shoots Down Russian Drones in Airspace Violation During Ukraine Attack
Apple Introduces Ultra-Thin iPhone Air, Enhanced 17 Series and New Health-Focused Wearables
Macron Appoints Sébastien Lecornu as Prime Minister Amid Budget Crisis and Political Turmoil
Vatican hosts first Catholic LGBTQ pilgrimage
Apple Unveils iPhone 17 Series, iPhone Air, Apple Watch 11 and More at 'Awe Dropping' Event
France joins Eurozone’s ‘periphery’ as turmoil deepens, say investors
France Faces New Political Crisis, again, as Prime Minister Bayrou Pushed Out
Nayib Bukele Points Out Belgian Hypocrisy as Brussels Considers Sending Army into the Streets
France, at an Impasse, Heads Toward Another Government Collapse
×