Adored by French women for its accessories and shoes, this fifty-year-old brand finds itself in difficulty again.
The French ready-to-wear industry has been struggling for several years. In this microcosm, the world of shoes is clearly not spared. Indeed, many French shoe labels ended up closing their doors for good after several decades of activity, leaving behind fashionistas and long-time fans who had been shopping there since they were young. Among the victims of this crisis, San Marinawhich closed shop in 2023, but also Andrewwhich is still looking for a buyer since the end of the previous year. In this whirlwind of legal proceedings and liquidations, another brand of shoes has today added to the toll. Two and a half years previously, it had already been placed in receivership by the Marseille commercial court, before being taken over in January 2024 by three players: My young ladies Paris, DS Invest And Union Brothers. In this first trimester, it is therefore the famous hunter Minelli who is placed in receivership.
A deterioration which dates back to September 2025; moment when the brand is placed in the safeguard procedure. In March 2026, it ended up falling into recovery, no longer able to honor its debts.
The brand has nevertheless done what is necessary to find its way back to success. She kept many of her promises and proceeded to “development of communication, particularly digital”as planned in the continuation plan presented and validated by the Marseille commercial court. On social networks, she has drawn out the heavy artillery to get people talking about her: she has invested in previously unexplored areas like TikTok, re-anchored its presence on Instagram.
Thunderous and full of chatter, communication made in Minelli draws on pop culture and fashion references that resonate with several generations (X, Y and Z), such as Sex and the City or even Gossip Girl. The advertising campaigns use the visual codes of successful fashion brands (Zara) and surf on societal trends that are causing a stir on the web, like dogs, pilates or even yoga. A premiumization strategy designed to differentiate itself from the “ultra fast fashion” mass and continue to exist in a ready-to-wear market saturated with these new entrants with accessories and shoes at knockdown prices.
For the moment, the strategy deployed by Minelli didn’t really work: according to our colleagues at Figaroit lost 3.7 million euros during its last published financial year 2024-2025. Result: today nearly 200 jobs are threatened.
But the fifty-year-old brand is not about to give up. Yesterday during the day, it even unveiled a complete overhaul of its website. On the menu, a modernized visual identity and, above all, new features which should make purchases easier for French women, such as e-reservation of products or free delivery to relay points. Hoping the future brightens for her.
