(of the) World (or Nudes of the World as us kids used to say diving into page 2 for a little T&A - was there a store back in the day called C&A?)
atlas please log in to view this image C&A 22 languages Article Talk Read Edit View history Tools Appearance hide Text Small Standard Large Width Standard Wide Color (beta) Automatic Light Dark From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia This article is about the clothing retailer C&A. For other uses, see C&A (disambiguation). Not to be confused with Canda. C&A please log in to view this image Company type Subsidiary Traded as B3: CEAB3 (only the unit in Brazil, C&A Modas SA)[1] Industry Retail Founded 1841; 184 years ago (in Sneek, Netherlands) Founders Clemens and August Brenninkmeijer Headquarters Vilvoorde, Belgium Düsseldorf, Germany Number of locations 1290 (2022)[2] Area served Continental Europe Brazil China (licensed) Mexico (licensed) Key people Giny Boer (CEO C&A Europe) Products Apparel Accessories Footwear Number of employees 50,000 Parent COFRA Holding AG Website www.c-and-a.com C&A is a multinational chain of retail clothing stores that originated in the Netherlands. It now has European head offices in Vilvoorde, Belgium, and Düsseldorf, Germany. The company operates approximately 1,300 stores in Europe and approximately 300 stores in Brazil, as well as websites for online shopping. It also licenses the C&A name for stores in Mexico and China, which are under different ownership.[3] History [edit] Foundation [edit] The Brenninkmeyer family had traded in linen and textiles since the 17th century from Mettingen, Germany. In 1841, a Dutch textile firm was founded in Sneek by brothers Clemens and August Brenninkmeijer, later taking its company name from the initials of the founders. The family was very secretive, in part to avoid customs scrutiny, and upon reaching age 14, male members of the family were given the choice of working for C&A or joining the Catholic priesthood. In 1906, Clemens' son, Bernard Joseph, started operating in Amsterdam. By 1910, there were ten C&A stores in the Netherlands.[4] In 1974, C&A was one of the sponsors of the 1974 FIFA World Cup. In 1978, C&A sponsored cycling through Eddy Merckx's team, taking over from Fiat France.[citation needed] Development since 2000 [edit] In 2000, due to competition from Tesco and Asda, as well as from expanding high street names such as H&M, Zara and Topshop, C&A announced its withdrawal from the British market, where it had been operating since 1922, had 109 stores,[5][6] and had used the name C&A Modes.[7][8][9][10][11][12] The last UK retail stores closed in 2001.[13][14] Primark bought six C&A stores.[15] In June 2009, C&A withdrew from the Argentinian market.[16] In the summer of 2010, Beyoncé released a clothing line, House of Deréon, in cooperation with C&A.[17] In May and June 2017, the company closed four stores in the Netherlands due to poor sales.[18] In February 2020, Grupo Axo agreed to buy C&A Mexico,[19] but cancelled the contract in March 2021. In June 2023 C&A Mexico was sold to Grupo Alfra, owner of the Mexican Cuidado con el Perro stores.[20] On 20 August 2020, C&A sold C&A China to Zhongke Tongrong Private Equity to operate the stores via franchising.[21] In 2021 and 2022, the company closed 70 stores and stated the goal of having half of its sales come from online channels by 2026.[22] In March 2022, the company shut its Canda brand, which produced formalwear, due to the decline in sales as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.[23][24] In June 2022, C&A began selling clothing via Amazon.[25][26] Also in July 2022, it was discovered that C&A's Serbian division was the victim of customs fraud on the import of goods from China. The unpaid duties led to the Serbian division filing bankruptcy and closing its 14 stores.[27][28] Corporate affairs [edit] Ownership [edit] The company name is derived from the initials of its founders, Clemens (1818–1902) and August (1819–1892) Brenninkmeijer. The Brenninkmeijer family owns C&A through a Swiss firm named COFRA Holding AG. The company's success has led the Brenninkmeijer family to be ranked among the wealthiest in the Netherlands, but most members of the family actually live in Geneva and Zug, Switzerland.[29] Brands [edit] C&A's brands, under which several of its goods are sold, include Angelo Litrico, Avanti, Clockhouse, Here+There, Palomino, Rodeo, Westbury, Yessica, Yessica Pure, and Your Sixth Sense. Criticism [edit] In December 2021, the European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights filed a criminal complaint in a Dutch court against C&A and other brands, including Lidl and Hugo Boss, alleging that they benefited from and were complicit in the use of forced labour by Uyghurs in Xinjiang.[30] Locations [edit] please log in to view this image C&A in Sneek, Netherlands, where the company was founded. please log in to view this image C&A in Berlin, Germany, with the Swissôtel Berlin in the same building. As of 2023, C&A had stores in the following countries:[31] Country No. of stores As of Austria 93 June 2023 [31] Belgium 97 June 2023 [31] Brazil 330+ Dec. 2023 [32] China 23 May 2023 [33] Croatia 23 June 2023 [31] Czechia 40 June 2023 [31] France 164 June 2023 [31] Germany 403 June 2023 [31] Hungary 34 June 2023 [31] Iraq 1 June 2023 [31] Italy 10 June 2023 [31] Luxembourg 7 June 2023 [31] Mexico 78 June 2023 [34] Netherlands 97 June 2023 [31] Poland 51 June 2023 [31] Portugal 27 June 2023 [31] Romania 50 June 2023 [31] Slovakia 15 June 2023 [31] Slovenia 14 June 2023 [31] Spain 81 June 2023 [31] Switzerland 89 June 2023 [31] Total ca. 1727+ In popular culture [edit] The Specials referenced C&A in "Man at C&A" on the 1980 album More Specials. The phrase "Man at C&A" was later used to typify someone who was unfashionable.[6][35][36] In an episode of the sitcom Only Fools and Horses, Del Boy tells his brother Rodney that when they become millionaires, their clothes will "come from Man at C&A".[36] The Belle and Sebastian song "Expectations" features a character who is given the choice between working at Debenhams and C&A "cause that's what they expect".[37]
