Coperni ceases operations after founders fail to resolve shareholder dispute
Co-founders Arnaud Vaillant and Sébastien Meyer announced the end of the Parisian ready-to-wear label after months of receivership and failed attempts to regain control from its majority shareholder.
Coperni, the Parisian ready-to-wear and accessories brand founded in 2013, is ceasing operations, co-founders Arnaud Vaillant and Sébastien Meyer announced on Wednesday. The closure comes months after the label entered receivership in June, a step the designers took in an attempt to resolve financial strain caused by their majority shareholder and exclusive distributor, Tomorrow London Group.
In a statement to press and retailers, the founders said they had attempted to preserve the brand but found no workable solution. They described their eight years building Coperni as “extraordinary” and expressed pride in what they had created together.
The shareholder dispute
The brand’s troubles began when Tomorrow, which has been Coperni’s majority shareholder and sole distributor since 2019, stopped paying suppliers and partners. In June, a Paris court approved Coperni’s petition for court protection, entering the company into receivership as Vaillant and Meyer sought to disentangle themselves from Tomorrow and build a path forward.
In March, Tomorrow London Group was acquired by Progetto 11, an investment vehicle tied to the e-commerce platform The Level Group, according to WWD. The sale removed Tomorrow’s founder and chief executive Stefano Martinetto and Three Hills Capital Partners from their roles. This ownership change occurred while the receivership proceedings were underway.
Known for experimental shows
Coperni had gained international recognition for its unconventional runway presentations and use of technology. In 2022, the brand staged a show in which a dress was spray-painted directly onto model Bella Hadid’s body, generating global media attention. In October 2024, the designers held a presentation at Disneyland Paris, which featured Kylie Jenner in a princess gown. Months later, they brought together roughly 200 video gamers inside the Adidas Arena for another show.
As the receivership dispute unfolded, Vaillant and Meyer pulled Coperni from Paris Fashion Week in March and were absent from the fall 2027 season show calendar. In their closing statement, they said there remained much territory left to explore and reinvent in their work as designers.
This article was compiled by the Glamorade editorial desk from the official announcements and reporting listed under Sources.
