Mixed emotions at Bristol: Dutch bankruptcy, but Belgian hope

Unable to find candidate-buyers, shoe chain Bristol has filed for bankruptcy in the Netherlands. In Belgium, however, there is hope for the majority of the 117 stores.

370 jobs lost

Most of the eighty Dutch Bristol stores had already closed, after a big clearance sale. Yesterday, the company filed for bankruptcy, leaving the 370 remaining employees jobless (but with the promise they will still receive their wages for the month of August). Dutch newspaper AD says the search for a potential buyer had proved fruitless.

Better news came from Belgium, where French shoe chain Chaussea is looking to acquire 62 stores (of the total of 117). This would be a huge leap forward for the French chain, that currently only has a dozen Belgian stores. This deal is expected to be confirmed on 6 September.

Moreover, several other players also want to take over one or a few stores. RetailDetail was able to gather information on four of them: three are local shoe chains (Mano, Torfs and vanHaren), while TEDi is a more remarkable candidate. The German non-food discounter would be looking to add ten former Bristol stores to its current total of six Belgian locations.