Shopping centres seeking to reclaim debts from Lee Cooper Romania

2010-02-01

Some of the shopping centres that are creditors of the retailer LCR Jeans, the holder of the franchise rights for Lee Cooper stores in Romania, have claimed to have tried to retrieve debts amounting to hundreds of thousands of euros from the retailer. However, in response Lee Cooper’s shareholders claim that their total debt to shopping centres amounts to just several thousand euros.
The company entered insolvency in December 2009 and this has left several of the shopping centres from which the company has withdrawn its stores out of pocket. Of the 15 Lee Cooper stores recently closed in Romania, the majority were located in shopping centres. LCR Jeans expects to emerge from insolvency within the next 2-3 years once the company has been restructured.
LCR Jeans has so far reported debts totalling €5.3m. The company’s main creditors include its suppliers, bank and leasing companies.
In 2008 LCR Jeans had a turnover of €10.83m in Romania.