Two bidders come forward for Claire’s France, with plans to take on 460 of its 829 staff

On Thursday, two companies submitted proposals to the Paris Economic Activities Court to take over the Claire’s brand in France, which was placed in receivership at the end of July, and to retain 460 of the 829 employees of the budget jewellery chain in France, according to lawyers for the employee representatives speaking to AFP.

The companies in question are fashion jewellery retailer June, which has already obtained authorisation to operate the Claire’s brand and plans to take on 426 employees, and Spanish phone-case retailer La Casa de las Carcasas, which intends to take on 34 employees.

June would also take over 139 shops out of Claire’s roughly 240 existing points of sale, and La Casa de las Carcasas three shops, where it would sell its phone accessories.

These “complementary offers”, which are very likely to be approved by the court on 14 November, “are sound and sustainable and could save nearly 50% of jobs,” said attorney Eve Ouanson.

A job protection plan (PSE) has already been initiated for employees who are not included in the takeover; for most of them, this is expected to result in redundancy. “The trade unions have signed the agreement on this PSE in a responsible manner to try to limit the damage in terms of jobs,” emphasised attorney Khaled Meziani.

At the end of July, the courts opened receivership proceedings for Claire’s France, a brand best known for its small pieces of jewellery, piercings and other accessories for teenagers.

The company said this was due to the continued decline in in-store sales over the past several years, exacerbated by US tariffs on Chinese products, on which Claire’s relies heavily.

However, according to the latest published accounts, Claire’s France generated a net profit of €1.3 million between late 2023 and late 2024, and €0.8 million in the previous financial year.

A third takeover bid was at one point presented to the court-appointed administrator before ultimately being rejected.

Claire’s difficulties are not limited to France: its US parent company declared bankruptcy in August before being taken over by an investment fund.

Claire’s Spanish subsidiary also declared insolvency in September.

In early September, employee representatives reported to the courts what they described as “serious irregularities in the management of the company”, accusing the US parent company of having “emptied the coffers” via “financial flows” between the group’s numerous subsidiaries.

Paris, 30 Oct 2025 (AFP)