French shoe retailer André is preparing for a new phase of development. André, photo: Fashion Network
04.05.2026 939

French shoe retailer André is preparing for a new phase of development.

French shoe retailer André, which filed for bankruptcy in April 2025, has found two buyers. One is the Breton fashion group Beaumanoir, which owns the Sarenza brand and previously acquired Naf Naf, Jennyfer, and La Halle, and the other is Belgian businessman Karim Rejal, who already owned André, reports Fashion Network.

At the end of January, the Paris Court of Economic Activities (TAE) ruled in favour of Mr. Regal, who was ordered to hire 43 employees, including 33 on permanent contracts, as well as 7 stores and 2 retail outlets.

The entrepreneur proposed "financing the business with his own funds. He plans to refocus on the most profitable retail spaces to improve their efficiency and prepare for future expansion," the judges explained.

Formerly owned by the once-dominant French textile company Vivarte, the André brand was first acquired in 2018 by online retailer Spartoo and then in 2020, as part of a court-ordered restructuring, by 1Monde9, a company owned by François Feijóo, the brand's former CEO.

Feijoo reduced the number of stores by more than half, retaining only about fifty of the original 180 outlets, as well as 13 franchises. André was then reacquired in 2023 after a second period of external administration.

Belgian company Optakare, led by Karim Rejal, invested in André, preserving 119 jobs (out of 250) and 21 stores (out of 50).

French shoe retailer André, which filed for bankruptcy in April 2025, has found two buyers. One is the Breton fashion group Beaumanoir, which owns the Sarenza brand and previously…
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