On Thursday December 12, the Paris commercial court decided on the future of French premium ready-to-wear retailer IKKS. At the end of a receivership procedure involving several purchasing bids for IKKS, the court has approved the offer by Santiago Cucci, who was named president of the group’s holding company HoldIKKS last year, and Michaël Benabou, co-founder of event sales site Veepee.
Inside an IKKS store – IKKS
The court’s decision has put an end to months of uncertainty for IKKS’s employees. According to figures drawn up by the receivers at the end of August, the group’s staff numbered 1,287 worldwide, 1,094 of them in France. At the time, the group had 473 stores between France and 11 other countries, plus headquarters in the town of Saint-Macaire-en-Mauges and offices in Paris.
IKKS gave a design make-over to its collections in summer, and in September it applied for receivership, after the group’s main shareholders, US investment funds Avenue Capital, CarVal Investors and Marathon Asset Management, expressed their wish to sell the company.
The IKKS group, which operates the eponymous brand as well as One Step and ICode, is still a leading international ready-to-wear retailer in the premium segment, operating several hundred retail outlets (between directly owned and franchised stores, and concessions) in nine countries. The path to new ownership has been complex, since the group was split in several entities, and none of the purchasing bids referred to the group as a whole.
The winning bid’s details
Cucci and Benabou have convinced the court after recently revising their bid upwards. Initially, the bid related to 141 stores, 88 of them directly owned, and 391 company employees.
The deal was clinched after the bid was extended to include 219 stores in France: 92 of them directly owned, 100 franchised, plus 27 Galeries Lafayette concessions. The employees associated to the directly owned stores are 546.
Benabou and Cucci, a former senior executive at Levi’s and a strategic advisor to G-Star, have taken over the IKKS business and are planning to operate a more streamlined store fleet. They will focus on womenswear and menswear, while childrenswear has been put on hold.
The dossiers given to prospective buyers indicated that the IKKS brand accounted for 80% of the group’s revenue, that 64% of its revenue was generated by womenswear, 21% by childrenswear, and 15% by menswear. When the company applied for receivership, direct retail accounted for 77% of revenue, e-commerce (both B2B and B2C) for 20%, and the remaining 3% was generated through the wholesale channel.
Rejected bids
The bid by sustainable fashion brand Faguo, which had been revised to include 15 stores and 30 jobs, was rejected. French group Beaumanoir (which owns womenswear brands Morgan and Caroll) had teamed up with Faguo, offering €1 million to buy the IKKS brand name and some of the stores.
Another rejected bid was put forward by Salih Halassi’s company Amoniss, a shareholder in Pimkie which recently acquired Christine Laure and Chevignon. It initially bid for a minimum of 168 stores and 393 employees.
BCRI Holding, which recently bought Café Coton, initially offered to buy 67 stores with a total of 426 employees. While AA Investments (owner of Smallable, L’Exception and Bonne Gueule) was interested in IKKS’s intangible assets. Verdoso, new owner of The Kooples, withdrew its bid before the November 28 hearing.
Since none of the bids related to the Icode and One Step brands, and to IKKS childrenswear, some of the latter’s stores in France have now closed. The new owners are therefore concentrating on the IKKS brand, out of a group fleet that had 550 stores as of the end of 2024, though streamlining measures started in H1 this year.
The brand’s employees are now hoping IKKS will be able to regain momentum as a recognised name in the premium ready-to-wear segment.
Expanding women’s fashion retailer Wyse London is set to open a pop-up store in Edinburgh, Scotland, on Saturday (13 December).
Wyse London
The 550 sq ft space on Frederick Street isn’t just for Christmas as it’s opening until next May, housing the brand’s latest styles from its Autumn/Winter collection, including bestsellers the Liana Chunky Funnel Neck Jumper, Philippa Pea Coat and festive dresses and tops.
The pop-up marks the latest in a series of new store openings, “following the successful introduction to the North of England” in York in September. That became its fourth permanent UK store, joining the brand’s two in London – Chelsea and Marylebone – as well as Southwold, Suffolk.
More stores, both pop-up and permanent, are planned over 2026 both nationally and internationally, the retailer said.
Founder Marielle Wyse added: “Edinburgh has become an increasingly significant city for us, as we’ve seen a rapidly growing community of customers shopping with us online, so opening a physical pop-up feels like the natural next step.
“The city’s cultural heritage and vibrant population offers a setting that aligns perfectly with our brand values, while the thriving tourism scene brings an energy and international audience we’re excited to welcome. With a discerning retail landscape, the city gives us a unique opportunity to build deeper relationships with both existing and new customers.”
Following the “outstanding success of its inaugural year”, textiles brand Maxxam is linking with the Graduate Fashion Foundation (GFF) to launch the second edition of their national design competition.
Image: Maxxam/GFF
Building on the “momentum, creativity, and exceptional talent showcased last year”, the 2025/26 competition invites fashion students across the UK and internationally “to reimagine the future of womenswear using Maxxam’s seamless, four-way stretch textiles.
Open to second- and final-year students from GFF-member universities, the competition “challenges entrants to create a trend-led womenswear S/S 2027 capsule collection”.
This year’s brief places “a stronger spotlight on interchangeable, multipurpose athleisure-inspired pieces, with particular emphasis on swimwear”.
Students are encouraged to “explore new stripe variations, jacquards, surface effects and sustainable design strategies, reflecting [Maxxam’s] ongoing commitment to low-waste manufacturing and its transition toward bio-based fibres”.
Three finalists will be selected to produce one full look from their submitted range, working hands-on with Maxxam Textiles and its UK manufacturing partners. These final looks will be showcased at Graduate Fashion Week 2026, displayed within the exhibition and modelled on the catwalk during the prestigious Gala Show.
From these finalists, there will be one overall winner, who will be awarded a trophy on the Gala runway on 18 June 2026, alongside a £250 cash prize and further industry mentoring experiences.
Rosemary Moore, inventor of the brand’s original fabric, said: “We are excited once more to be part of GFW It was a real pleasure connecting to the new generation of students last year and supporting them through the creative and the manufacturing process, we are aiming this year to also take them behind the scenes of our textile manufacturing in the midlands, especially if they offer creative concepts we can put into practice for them.”
Pulse-racing experiences have been big this year at many UK retail destinations, but maybe a more sedate set of attractions are needed during the hectic Christmas trading period.
John Lewis Partnership
So John Lewis Partnership has introduced three new hospitality destinations to its stores in response to the continued demand from customers to combine shopping with wider experiences. The department store retailer has opted for relaxation and refuelling. A wise choice given that JLP noted hospitality-related sales are up almost 10% over the past year.
New additions include a 250 sq ft Champagne Bar that has opened in the atrium of Peter Jones, Sloane Square; and a European first with Warabi-Mochi Kamakura (a premium Japanese brand specialising in matcha and warabi mochi, a traditional Japanese confection), officially open at John Lewis Oxford Street
Building on its success in other stores, John Lewis Southampton has also opened a new Ori Caffe, the 11th across the John Lewis portfolio.
Katie Papakonstantinou, director of Services & Hospitality for John Lewis said: “We’re continually looking for ways to enhance the John Lewis experience, and [these additions are] a direct response to our customers’ growing desire to combine shopping with unique and enjoyable experiences.”
“Our growth in hospitality sales over the past year is a clear sign that this strategy is resonating, and these exciting new concepts are central to our commitment to making our stores a true destination – for the festive season and beyond.”
She added: “This investment in hospitality is a key component of the broader John Lewis store transformation plan which has just seen the John Lewis Bluewater complete a nearly £10 million refurbishment, as well as investments into Beauty Halls across the Liverpool, Solihull, Welwyn, and Cambridge stores.”
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