The Courtepaille chain of restaurants in difficulty has requested the opening of receivership proceedings with the Nanterre commercial court, announced Monday its owner the Napaqaro group, which had indicated in early February that it wanted to sell the brand.
Faced with “
serious economic and financial difficulties first caused by the Covid crisis and which were subsequently aggravated
”, Courtepaille “
decided to seek the protection of the Nanterre commercial court
”, it is specified. in the press release.
A hearing "
will be held before the end of the month
", continues Napaqaro, and "
an observation period should be announced
" for Courtepaille, which has 144 directly operated restaurants and 76 franchises and employs 2,089 employees.
During this, the management, assisted by "
two judicial administrators appointed by the court, will make every effort to seek solutions for the recovery of Courtepaille
", details the press release.
"
This decision was unavoidable given the financial situation of Courtepaille
" whose "
economic model, already weakened, no longer works in view of the current inflation which is causing the rise in the cost of raw materials and the drop in the level of attendance at restaurants
”.
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A turnover of 190 million euros
The family brand has failed to regain its 2019 level of attendance, before the health crisis: it was still down 25% last year with a turnover of 190 million euros.
Courtepaille has also suffered from the surge in inflation, which increases its supply costs and forces families on tight budgets to make choices in their consumption.
“
The opening of this procedure will allow us to open a new phase in the search for investors
,” concludes Napaqaro, who bought Courtepaille a little over two years ago, for 17 million euros, from the British fund ICG.
Napaqaro, which also owns Buffalo Grill and franchises the American fast food chain based on chicken Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen, says it wants to “
find the best possible solution to preserve activity and jobs
” at Courtepaille.