A retailer once hailed as the epitome of California cool has filed for bankruptcy, becoming the latest casualty of the so-called ‘retail apocalypse’ gripping the US.
Esprit, which was founded in San Francisco in 1968, surged in popularity in the 1980s and 1990s.
It was beloved by young Americans for its bright colored clothes and cutting-edge commercials, including one featuring a teenage Gwyneth Paltrow in 1991.
But the company struggled to keep up with rising competition into the 21st century, and a last-ditch attempt to revamp the brand in recent years failed to boost sales.
Esprit filed notices of Chapter 7 bankruptcy in New York on Monday, having wracked up more than $3 million in liabilities.
The brand was beloved by young Americans for its bright colored clothes and cutting-edge commercials, including one featuring a teenage Gwyneth Paltrow in 1991
Esprit, which was founded in San Francisco in 1968, surged in popularity in the 1980s and 1990s
The company will close its 38,000 square-foot Manhattan headquarters, it announced.
The space, which housed a showroom, a photo studio and Esprit’s global design, branding, creative and marketing teams, opened in February 2023.
The headquarters was intended to be a beacon for the brand’s revival, and its strategy to reclaim a foothold in the highly competitive US retail market.
But earlier this year Esprit cut staff at the facility down from 115 to just 50.
The company closed all its brick-and-mortar stores in the US in 2012, but kept some locations operating in Europe.
As of Thursday, its online store was closed, with a message saying that the company was ‘working on an exciting new redesign of our US website to bring you the best shopping experience possible.’
‘With costs and rents and the state of the business, it was unsustainable,’ Tony Strippoli, chief operating officer of Esprit in the Americas, told WWD.
He said that the company ‘ramped up too fast’ in an attempt to revive the brand.
‘There wasn’t a fashion issue or a brand issue. It was more of a cost issue and related to state of the business in Europe. There has been a long legacy of losses there. The North American strategy was to latch on to Europe,’ he added.
Earlier this year, Esprit closed a total of 160 stores through bankruptcies in Belgium, Germany and Switzerland, according to the outlet, leaving a handful of locations remaining.
The company closed all its brick-and-mortar stores in the US in 2012, but kept some locations operating in Europe (Pictured: A commercial from the 1980s)
Esprit, which was founded by Susie and Doug Tompkins, appealed to the youth with its laid-back California style and sustainable ethos.
It was known for its basics – including classic denim, oversized sweaters and graphic T-shirts – as well as bright colors, bold patterns and boxy silhouettes.
At its height, it was worth $800 million, according to SFGate, and had hundreds of stores across the US, Europe and Asia.
The brand was among the first to use real people in its advertising campaigns, which was spearheaded by photographer Oliviero Toscani who also designed the aesthetic of the Benetton commercials in the early 1990s.
One 1991 Esprit commercial asked young people to send in their suggestions for how to improve the world.
‘Give back the land stolen from Native Americans,’ one ad read.
‘I would distribute condoms in every high school in America,’ read another, featuring a teenage Gwyneth Paltrow.
Doug and Susie Tompkins posing with Esprit employees in 1985
Esprit filed notices of Chapter 7 bankruptcy in New York on Monday, having wracked up more than $3 million in liabilities
Esprit executive Susie Tompkins (far right) works with designers Karen Johnson and Doreen Chen in the 1980s
It comes amid widespread store closures across the US.
BuyBuy Baby announced earlier this month that it would be shuttering its ten remaining stores by the end of the year.
The retailer joins the likes of Walgreens, Macy’s and Big Lots, which have faced mass closures this year.
Pharmacy giant Walgreens announced the closure of 1,200 locations across the country.
Around 500 of the stores scheduled for the chop will shutter over the next year, although their locations have not yet been revealed.
Big Lots also announced details of another 208 stores it plans to shut as it battles bankruptcy.
In addition, Macy’s is closing 150 shops over the next three years – including the shuttering of 55 this year.
