The Alexandre Vauthier fashion house has finally found a buyer. Due to serious financial difficulties, the Parisian label was placed under receivership by the Paris Commercial Court on February 13. According to a document from the Paris Commercial Court available to FashionNetwork.com, the company was taken over on June 19 by one of its retailers, Californian fashion e-tailer Revolve, which is listed on the New York Stock Exchange.
Known for its bold silhouettes and use of volume, the house – which has been on the official calendar of the Fédération de la haute couture et de la mode for ten years – was founded in 2009 by designer Alexandre Vauthier (a former student of Esmod and then a disciple of Thierry Mugler).
The company of the same name, had been in suspension of payments since November 20 2023, and went into receivership mid-February. In March, Chinese entrepreneur Shun Zhong submitted a takeover bid, and on April 17, the Shanghai-based businessman told a hearing that he wanted to include US company Revolve in his bid.
However, mid-May, the two potential buyers and designer Alexandre Vauthier were unable to reach an agreement. As a result, the Paris Commercial Court reopened the bidding process and set a new deadline of May 21 for the submission of bids. The receiver (Hélène Bourbouloux, head of the Paris firm FHBX) has received a new offer from Revolve, while Shun Zhong has withdrawn his bid.
Building a global brand
In its proposal, Revolve, based in Cerritos, California, pointed out that “the group has already sold more than $4 million worth of Alexandre Vauthier products to its customers.”
Describing itself as “a next-generation fashion site for Generation Y and Generation Z consumers,” Revolve was founded in 2003 by Mike Karanikolas and Michael Mente. Becoming a minority shareholder, current CEO and founder Alexandre Vauthier will retain only 20% of the capital.
Over the next three years, Alexandre Vauthier intends to invest a total of €6 million, including the purchase price of €250,000, in order to “take over and perpetuate the business of the Paris-based company” and “build a global brand” by leveraging its e-commerce platform, marketing capabilities and pre-existing customer base, and by taking “advantage of Revolve’s technological infrastructure” and its community of 2.6 million international customers.
By 2023, the Californian e-tailer’s sales will total $1.07 billion, or just over €997 million. Due to go public in spring 2019, Revolve Inc. also owns a portfolio of around twenty brands through Alliance Apparel, which it acquired in 2014.
The American group, which is taking over all of Alexandre Vauthier’s stock and 29 employees, also intends to “provide immediate distribution points” for the label, notably through “wholesale partnerships” and by distributing it on its online platforms Revolve.com and Fwrd.com, which have a creative positioning. “A negative cash flow is anticipated until 2027, with a low point of -5.1 million euros in January 2025,” the legal document also points out.
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