Is sporting goods distributor Go Sport insolvent? The Grenoble commercial court will rule on Thursday after Monday’s examination of the file of this group founded in 1978, which employs 2,160 employees in France. The judges’ decision has been reserved for January 19, Go Sport’s Central Economic and Social Committee (CSEC) lawyer Me Evelyn Bledniak said after about an hour and a half of visibly tense closed-door hearing.
HPB leaders, for their part, were walled off in silence, even as a Force Ouvrière representative, Laurence Labaurie, strongly challenged its chairman Wilhelm Hubner at the end of the hearing. “What a pity! Camaïeu wasn’t enough for you, now it’s Go Sport? You won’t take him to paradise!” He told her. A dozen staff representatives, dressed in sleeveless vests in Go Sport colours, went to court, also declaring themselves “rebellious, angry”.
For HPB leaders, the situation has nothing to do with that of Camaïeu
This Monday’s hearing was dedicated to examining the file presented on January 9 by the investigating judge appointed at the end of December to “make a precise statement of the financial situation” of the group and its subsidiary Go Sport France, with the help of their audit firms. and their auditors.
The points of view diverge diametrically between the representatives of the workers, who fear the worst, and HPB, who had bought it at the end of 2021 for a symbolic euro and is optimistic. HPB leaders insist that Go Sport “is not in default” and that its situation has nothing to do with that of Camaïeu, which was abruptly liquidated at the end of September. After “17 years of losses”, Go Sport should return to profit “from 2023”, said Wilhelm Hubner, president of HPB.
On January 3, the group appointed a specialist in the restructuring of companies in crisis, Patrick Puy, previously head of the fallen textile flagship Vivarte (Caroll, Minelli, La Halle, Naf Naf, Chevignon, etc.) to head the brand . ) and whose mission is to “continue the necessary transformation” of the company.
Employees Skeptical of Gap Acquisition
On the contrary, Go Sport workers, their union representatives and the CSEC are concerned after the findings of the auditors and an expert appointed by the latter. They had estimated that the company was in default for the October-November period and were alarmed by a €36m cash increase from Go Sport to HPB.
Another cause for concern: HPB announced on Thursday “the acquisition of GAP France by Go Sport”. For an amount of 38 million euros, “it intends to reinforce the Lifestyle and Sportswear activity of these two HPB brands, maintaining specific strategies”. According to Christophe Lavalle, delegate of Force Ouvrière and member of the CSEC, “today (Monday) it was highlighted that nobody understood how Gap was an element of external growth, how Gap was going to be able to push Go Sport up, quite the contrary”.
For the rest, “for us our choice is a bit like the plague or cholera: either conciliation or judicial reparation, with the possibility of social damage that can occur in both cases,” he lamented.
Source: BFM TV
