Interior chain Casa applies for bankruptcy, all 63 stores in our country remain closed (inland)

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In recent years, Casa, just like many other retail chains, had landed in difficult financial papers. The company went looking for more income and extra financing, closed loss -making stores and reorganized the head office.

Due to “unfavorable developments in the European” Home & Deco “retail market”, the company submitted a request for judicial reorganization at the end of October 2024. As a result, Casa was protected against creditors until 12 March. “During that protection period, a debt repair was negotiated with a series of creditors, but unfortunately that did not lead to the intended result,” it says in a press release on Wednesday.

Debt

In the search for extra resources, twelve parties were spoken, says the interior chain. Various options were analyzed, such as a restart with fewer stores and extra financing from the current shareholders. “Until the last minute, solutions were sought, but unfortunately all the efforts and the many conversations did not lead to a positive outcome. In addition, no external financier or strategic party turned out to want to commit to one of the proposed options, “it sounds.

“Until the last minute, solutions were sought, but unfortunately all efforts and the many conversations did not lead to a positive outcome”

Casa

Casa International, which includes the Belgian activities of the chain, can no longer pay the debts. The company is therefore obliged to apply for the bankruptcy. This is happening today at the Turnhout corporate court. It will then be up to the curator to decide what happens to the stores and the staff. In anticipation, the stores are closed, according to a spokeswoman.

“Surprise”

The unions did not immediately expect that the bankruptcy is requested. “The protection against creditors will soon be released. So we knew that something was coming. But the bankruptcy remains a surprise. In the past, the company has succeeded in climbing a judicial reorganization. So there was some hope, “says Johan van Loon, secretary for ACV Puls. It is now up to the curator to determine what will happen to Casa. “Will the curator succeed in which the company itself has not succeeded?”, The trade unionist wonders.

“The protection against creditors will soon be released. So we knew that something was coming ”

Johan van Loon

ACV

Casa had some remarkable shifts in shareholding last year. In April the Swedish-Lebanese businessman Ayad Al-Saffar Casa from the Investment Fund Globitas, but in June he already sold the company to commercial director Frank Pruijn, who once worked in the DIY sector. That happened after Al-Saffar could buy the department store chain Inno and preferred to focus on it. Casa was recently led by Vincent Nolf, who used to be working at Makro and saw that group go bankrupt.

In addition to our country, the chain is also active in the Netherlands, France, Italy, Switzerland, Luxembourg, Spain and Portugal and puts everything together together 2,230 employees. What will happen with the stores outside Belgium depends on the legal framework and the actual situation in those countries.