C&A is no longer manufacturing in Germany. The Dutch fashion retailer with headquarters in Düsseldorf, Germany, has decided to close down its state-of-the-art jeans production facility in Mönchengladbach, as local daily paper Rheinische Post has reported. The site, called Factory for Innovation in Textiles (FIT), specialised in producing more sustainable jeans and was opened in 2021, in what has turned out to be a failed localisation effort. Until the 1980s-90s, C&A used to operate up to 14 manufacturing sites across Germany.

FIT, which FashionNetwork.com visited in 2023, was initially equipped to produce approximately 420,000 pairs of jeans per year, with the goal of eventually producing 800,000 pairs. C&A spent several million euros to set up the factory, saying it was “a key investment designed to experiment with alternative manufacturing processes.” Many of the production stages were automated, in an effort to make Europe-based manufacturing profitable. But FIT has failed to meet its objectives, and C&A has thrown in the towel. Nearly 90 jobs are at risk.

The closure was announced last week, to the surprise of employees, commercial partners and local authorities. “We were shocked by the news,” said Felix Holtgrave, from partner start-up 140fahrenheit, which co-founded the factory. However, halting C&A production may not mean the factory will become useless. “We still believe in the basic concept,” said Holtgrave. “It’s a shame, especially for image reasons, because it was a showcase project,” said Ulrich Schückhaus, of Mönchengladbach’s municipal business development agency, speaking to German media outlet WDR.

C&A, which operates over 13,000 stores in 17 countries, is undergoing a tough transition period in Europe. Last July, the CEO of C&A Europe, Giny Boer stepped down. Edward Brenninkmeijer, a member of the family that owns C&A, is still acting as interim CEO. In France too C&A is navigating choppy waters: Tarek Hosni, a corporate restructuring specialist, took charge of the local subsidiary, which operates nearly 160 stores, in December 2024.