We'll fight like hell...

Photo by Attentie Attentie on Unsplash

Fashion retail was already in a dire condition in 2019. 2020 was brutal. But what's happening now is beyond any comprehension. Non essential stores are going down. State of Art, a men's fashion retail brand in Netherlands and Belgium, was a very successful business until March 13, 2020. We will be again in 2022 and beyond.

By now we've entered into the 12th week of the lockdown. In the Netherlands our government has forced non-essential stores into one of the most harsh regimes in Europe. It couldn't have started at a more inconvenient moment, just two weeks before Christmas.

We all know the bigger picture; we need to stop the virus, forcing down R-factor, fighting the new variants etc. There is no discussion about that. InRetail, the Dutch trade association for retailers, has explained multiple times to our government that retail is very capable of enforcing strict rules to customers. Just like the ones we've seen in other countries, just like the ones we've used during spring 2020. One person to enter a store (like in Belgium), max 1 person per 25 square metres and all other regular precautions. But to no avail. There's a complete lack of proof that non food retail has been the centre of virus spread. We were forced to close down anyway.

The lockdown facts: in the Netherlands 300.000 people cannot work in stores. €700m lost sales per week, 56.000 closed doors, 60.000 jobs at imminent risk.

State of Art has exciting new summer collections in store. We've opened a brand new flagship store in the new Mall of the Netherlands back in November 2020, which was open for just three weeks. And we've produced a new brand movie and marketing material. Everything is ready to meet with our fans and customers, like we've done in the past 32 years. But our doors remain closed. We still have the Belgium network up and running. Our e-com performance is very strong and our heritage channel, our wholesale business, performs okay. But we've met retail customers in our showrooms in tears, ending up their family business. Built by their parents. The upsides in our online channels don't compensate for the downside, not even close. So this feels just extremely unfair.

We are destined to survive. Our transformation into a modern omni channel business was all-ready well underway. There is no stopping us. We'll fight from this spot and enter into new and unknown territory. The idea of empty high streets in Dutch cities, with many colleague stores out of business, is a gloomy one, for sure. It will certainly effect our own retail operation in future. We'll ask ourselves: "what's our future worth when many cities lost their vibrant centre, with closed down restaurants, bars and and stores?"

In the meantime supermarkets are selling newspapers, whereas kiosks have been forced to close down. Household textiles are sold in abundance, but apparel and variety stores, selling the same merchandise, have been closed down. Revenues in food retail are staggering high, +15% and more in 2020 in comparable months. The boards of food retailers even received high bonuses, purely because out-of-home consumption (restaurants and bars) and non essential retail has been locked down. Market places and strong pure players are growing like hell. Our fashion business is tanking...., so much for solidarity. Meanwhile, in the UK the discussion has started of levying one-of-taxes for online giants and “excessive profits tax" for supermarkets.

Don't say: "isn't your government helping you with multiple subsidies?". They are not. There has been a strong lobby from the retail associations, to no avail. The subsidies available so far are fine for stand alone retailers with one or two stores. Not for network retailers like we are. It feels awkward that in a well developed economy, like the Netherlands, a government is breaking up and tearing apart the fabric of competition and supply. Click & Collect, and since this week, "shopping by appointment" is just a drop in the ocean.

If people in my network say: "aren't you happy now, with less restrictions than before?" I will say: "we are happy when we can operate physical stores in the Netherlands like we used to." We will fight like hell...

I am managing State of Art since November 2019, on an interim base.

Over the last 30+ years, State of Art has become an established name across the Netherlands and Belgium. A network of: 41 own brand stores and webshop, together with more than 600 official dealers, means we are firmly on the menswear map in the territory we know best.

State of Art. Style. Evolved.