Will the sporting goods distributor Go Sport experience the same fate as Camaïeu? The Grenoble commercial court examined this Monday on the file of this group founded in 1978, which employs 2,160 employees in France. The decision is expected on Thursday, the judges’ decision having been reserved for January 19. At the end of December, the courts heard the various parties for the first time, then instructed an investigating judge to “make a precise statement of the financial situation” of the group and its subsidiary Go Sport France.
“There were debates, discussions (…) We presented the accounts”, indicated the lawyer of the central social and economic committee (CSEC) of Go Sport, Me Evelyn Bledniak, after 1h30 of hearing visibly tense behind closed doors, refusing to make any predictions. “There are things that (parent company Hermione People and Brands) HPB announced. Then the question is: does it hold, is it enough? And that is what the court will rule on,” she added.
The leaders of HPB, for their part, were walled in silence, even when a representative of Force Ouvrière strongly challenged its president Wilhelm Hubner at the end of the hearing. A dozen staff representatives, wearing sleeveless vests in the colors of Go Sport, went to court, declaring themselves also “revolted, angry. »
“17 years of losses”
In fact, the points of view diverge diametrically between the representatives of the employees, who fear the worst, and the parent company HPB which had bought it at the end of 2021 for a symbolic euro and appears optimistic. The leaders of HPB insist that Go Sport “is not in a state of insolvency” and that its situation has nothing to do with that of Camaïeu, liquidated abruptly at the end of September.
After “17 years of losses”, Go Sport should return to profit “from 2023”, assures Wilhelm Hubner, the president of HPB. On January 3, the group appointed a specialist in the restructuring of companies in difficulty, Patrick Puy, formerly head of the fallen textile flagship Vivarte (Caroll, Minelli, La Halle, Naf Naf, etc.), to head the brand. Its mission is to “pursue the necessary transformation” of the company, according to HPB.
Unions worried
Conversely, the employees of Go Sport, and especially their union representatives as well as the central social and economic committee (CSEC), are worried about the situation: auditors and an expert appointed by this CSEC had made observations severe.
They had indeed estimated that the company was in default of payment over the October-November period and were alarmed by a rise of 36 million euros in cash from Go Sport to HPB. The CSEC hopes “that the light will be shed”.
“There are things that escape us” on the economic situation of the group, estimated Wednesday a delegate of the first union of Go Sport, the CGT, without wanting to be named by name. According to him, Patrick Puy’s mission is to find a buyer for Go Sport rather than straightening out the group.
The acquisition of GAP “is perplexing”
Another cause for concern: HPB announced Thursday “the acquisition of GAP France by Go Sport”, according to a press release. This acquisition “aims to strengthen the Lifestyle and Sportwear activity of these two HPB brands, while preserving specific strategies”, according to the same source. The amount of this takeover, 38 million euros, “is puzzling because there is no clarity on the valuation of GAP, which would also experience difficulties”, said Thursday Me Evelyn Bledniak.
Finally, according to our information, Wilhelm Hubner could also have to explain himself on Monday on the generous sponsorship contract concluded in January 2022 between Go Sport and the Vélo Club de Roubaix Lille Métropole, which he chairs.