Fonq, Dutch home decor webshop, declared bankrupt

The curtain has fallen on online home furnishings retailer Fonq. After years of struggling, millions in injections of capital, and five changes in management, the company has succumbed to its structural losses.

Years of decline and losses

Fonq was founded in 2003 and grew into an online department store with a turnover of 66 million euros in 2015. The 2016 acquisition by Ad Scheepbouwer, who had previously made a fortune selling his stake in Wehkamp, was intended to grow the Dutch online store to 200 million euros, but instead the company was forced to downsize: the focus shifted to home and kitchen, and international operations were divested. Over the course of four years, Fonq went through four CEOs and underwent sweeping reorganizations.