Suit Supply receives 40 million euros in government-guaranteed loans. The shareholders of the of made-to-measure menswear retailer also inject another 20 million euros into the company after the corona crisis hit hard.
No suits in lockdown
The corona crisis hit Suit Supply hard: the Dutch custom-made suit retailer had to close most of its international stores temporarily, but apart from that, demand plummeted as people hardly had to go to the office or to festive occasions for months on end. “People sitting on the couch or in the garden don’t need our stuff“, says founder and CEO Fokke de Jong in Het Financieele Dagblad.
For 40 million euros in additional bank loans, the company therefore receives a state guarantee from the Dutch government. With that system of state aid at the time of the corona crisis, the government guarantees 80% of the borrowed amount. Suit Supply also called on state support to intervene in the wage costs of employees during the lockdown.
The two shareholders in the chain also made a substantial contribution themselves: top executive Fokke de Jong injected 10 million euros into his company, as did investment group and co-shareholder NPM. In the meantime, the retailer nevertheless sees demand picking up again. Another windfall is that the unsold stock simply retains its value: since men’s costumes are less sensitive to trends, Suit Supply thinks it can still sell them.
