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PARIS, France — The French fashion brand Sonia Rykiel, founded by the legendary designer best known for her stripy knits, will liquidate operations effective immediately.
The decision was made after a Paris commercial court judge rejected the lone remaining bidder for the company, Lévy, a Paris-based family operating in the real estate and medical sectors. Their plan involved a focus on digital and the divestment of the Boulevard Saint-Germain flagship.
Sonia Rykiel has 134 employees. The brand's six stores in France and Monaco, as well as its intellectual property and archives, will be sold.
Sonia Rykiel owner First Heritage Brands, helmed by French luxury executive Jean-Marc Loubier, was eager to unload the brand. Facing a sharp decline in sales and a rocky recent split with designer Julie de Libran, Sonia Rykiel filed for bankruptcy protection in France in April and liquidated in the US. First Heritage Brands, which is backed by Li & Fung billionaires Victor and William Fung in partnership with Loubier, still owns Paris-based shoemaker Robert Clergerie and luxury leather goods label Delvaux, both of which it acquired in 2011.
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