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It’s not over for Ssense.
On Friday, the Superior Court of Quebec granted the retailer creditor protection under Canada’s Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act (CCAA), meaning it can maintain operations while it restructures and stabilises the business. Ssense’s founders – CEO Rami Atallah and brothers Firas and Bassel – will remain in charge. The Atallah family also now has time to potentially pursue a sale of the company under court supervision, giving it the ability to shop Ssense on the market and solicit a wide variety of offers, according to the application, viewed by Vogue Business. The company’s goal is to emerge from CCAA, exploring investment and refinancing offers.
This is much needed breathing room and a win for Ssense, which filed the application after its primary lender placed the company under CCAA protection, forcing a sales process without Ssense’s consent, according to the company. The company said the outcome of the court application was a joint agreement between it and its creditors. Ernst Young will oversee the restructuring process.
The Canadian e-tailer, which laid off 100 employees in May, is facing a new trade reality with high tariffs and the end of a free shipping exemption law in the US.
“Today’s court decision is a critical step, marking the beginning of our next phase,” CEO Rami Atallah said in a statement. “With the support of our lenders, we now have the foundation to develop and implement a restructuring plan aimed at securing Ssense’s long-term future. Our priority remains protecting our employees, customers and partners, and we are committed to rebuilding their trust.”
Ssense’s future now depends on a successful restructuring of the business and securing further investment or financing. The company now has $40 million in interim financing ($15 million from banks and $25 million from the Atallah family) to maintain operations and payroll while it restructures. The company made $1.3 billion in revenue in 2024, and has $371 million in debt, with $229 million owed to banks and trade partners.
Late payments to some designers became a problem in the past year, and became more pronounced over the past four months. Over 100 employees were laid off in May. Ssense cited Trump’s tariffs and the loss of the $800 de minimis exemption (59 per cent of its customers are American, according to the filing), as well as high interest rates, unsold inventory and shifting consumer behaviour as reasons for its financial troubles.
The luxury slowdown also posed a unique problem for Ssense, which is a champion of emerging designer labels: in an industry downturn, customers tend to spend more with well-known brands, rather than gambling on new names that might not stick around. Another problem cited by designers and brands that did business with Ssense was the size of its buys — as inventory piled up and luxury spending dipped, the biannual Ssense sale became a bigger event, training customers to wait for the significant markdowns.
Ssense is one of several multibrand luxury retailers currently riddled with challenges. Last month, Italian retailer Luisaviaroma filed for court protection; Matches went into administration last year; and Farfetch was sold in a fire sale. The effect on independent and emerging talent has been significant in the past: the closure of Matches, which was also known for stocking smaller brands, has meant that several have folded or at least have not returned to London Fashion Week yet. Before that, Opening Ceremony’s closure in 2020 reduced the retail opportunities for young talent and even led to some brands going under.
This next phase, and whether or not it’s successful, will carry implications for fashion’s indie designers, many of whom relied on Ssense as a retail outlet that supported emerging fashion. Ssense was a proud first stockist for many of today’s independent and emerging designers, which they leveraged to produce their collections on a larger scale and get into more retail doors. When news broke that Ssense had filed for bankruptcy protection, it raised concerns about the impact on the indie designer landscape, given that many designers rely on Ssense as a retail partner.
As the restructuring process has played out, some brands said they were holding back on sending orders, while others are trying to secure payments and pre-payments before shipping, to minimise financial exposure. The ability to continue operations with new financing and creditor protection is “good news”, says Gary Wassner, CEO of Hilldun Corporation, which provides financial services to fashion brands and receives payments from Ssense on behalf of the brands he works with. Last week, when Ssense’s path forward was up in the air, he said, “We are unable to approve their orders until we know what the courts determine the path forward will be. Our clients are not going to want to ship until they know what the entity is that they’re shipping to and how it is going to be financed.”
For now, sales at Ssense are back on. “We are grateful for the unwavering support of our community, which reinforces our global relevance and the strength of our brand,” said Atallah. “We now have the time, resources and structure in place to begin the process of rebuilding a stronger Ssense.”
Clarification: Clarifies Ssense’s intentions around emerging from CCAA. (13 September 2025)
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