In Laval, the last stock of Pronuptia wedding dresses sold at auction

The glorious past of Pronuptia was dispersed in fifty lots this Friday in Laval (Mayenne). Under the hammer of auctioneer François Nugues, 292 cocktail dresses flew away for 3,200 euros, 1,236 wedding dresses found takers for 1,530 euros, 1,300 pairs of women's shoes for 4,500 euros. In just over two hours, 30,000 pieces of clothing were sold for a total of 149,000 euros.

During the sale, Céline, who runs the Taffetas boutique in Vire (Calvados), steps up. “It's interesting, these are dresses for 1000 euros that we could sell 500 euros in stores. Customers will be satisfied to be able to benefit from a cheaper offer. Especially since, since the start of the crisis, prices have increased by 30%. All raw materials from China are more expensive. "She will leave with a batch of a hundred dresses at 2,500 euros.

The dresses, which range from ivory to the purest white, are aligned for presentation on soulless coat racks. Others are still wrapped in plastic like comforters. The discreet and carpeted chic of the wedding dress shops has given way to the cold concrete of the Pronuptia warehouse where all the last stocks had been gathered.

The brand was created in 1958

The brand that democratized the wedding dress by offering ready-to-wear at affordable prices since 1958 had been placed in liquidation on February 4. Struggling for years, the company had been placed in receivership in 2012. The continued decline in the number of marriages and the competition from online sales have got the better of Pronuptia. "It's scary that a big house like that could disappear. It was an emblematic brand, ”blows another shopkeeper from the region who came to try her luck. Still, the low prices make people happy. “We will be able to get started, smile Moussa and Sarah, from the Paris region, who bought a lot of 150 dresses. It's 28 euros per dress if you add the costs. We just have to find a place, and that makes us a very reasonable starting point to start our dress rental business. "

Most of the large lots, sometimes with more than 2,000 dresses, have been bought by discreet sellers who can resell them at bargain prices. To be symbolic, these auctions are not the highlight of the sale of Pronuptia's remains. On July 2, brands and domain names are auctioned. The name Pronuptia is valued between 450,000 and 630,000 euros. "At the national level, as a well-known brand in the field of marriage, there is Pronuptia, and that's about it," emphasizes Me Nugues. There really is a historical dimension. It is as if we were to sell the name Chicorée Leroux. A sale that can make us hope that the brand will one day come back to life.