Esprit Closes All Remaining Stores in Germany After Insolvency

The fashion retailer ends nearly 40 years in Germany, with 1,300 employees losing their jobs and its European brand rights sold to Deichmann and Theia Group.

• Esprit officially shut down its last 30 stores in Germany at the end of January 2025, completing the closure of all 56 locations initially planned by November 2024.
• The closures follow Esprit's insolvency filing for its European operations in May 2024 due to financial difficulties and the failure to find a buyer.
• Germany, once Esprit's largest market with around 170 stores, now sees the brand's complete exit after nearly four decades of operation since its first store opened in Cologne in 1986.
• European brand rights for Esprit have been sold to Deichmann, focusing on footwear, and Theia Group, specializing in brand management, with future product availability in Germany still uncertain.
• At its peak in 2010-2011, Esprit operated over 1,100 stores globally, but by 2023, this number had dwindled to around 150, reflecting the brand's steep decline.

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