Cease of Operations: Coperni
Following months of trying to resolve its conflict with its distributor and shareholder, Tomorrow, Coperni has ceased operations, the brand revealed today.
In a personal memo shared with Vogue Business, co-founders and creative directors Arnaud Vaillant and Sébastien Meyer stated they had been unable to resolve an ongoing dispute involving unpaid sums.
“These eight years have been extraordinary,” the Coperni duo expressed in a personal email. “Coperni has always been a collective adventure, and we are immensely proud of what we have created.” The company thanked the Fédération de la Haute Couture et de la Mode (FHCM), stores, buyers, press, celebrities, models, and other industry figures who had supported them.
They continued, “As the world becomes increasingly challenging, particularly in the fashion industry, we believe there is still so much to create and reinvent. Innovation has always been our passion and a priority in everything we do. We look ahead with optimism and plenty of ideas, and cannot wait to share them with you.”
In June, Vogue Business reported that Coperni had secured protection from the Paris Court (France’s equivalent of Chapter 11) to aid its continued operations. At the time, Vaillant informed Vogue Business that the support followed several months of pending payments owed to the brand by Tomorrow, its exclusive distributor and majority shareholder. Additionally, Coperni disclosed that Tomorrow had terminated its licensing agreement in place.
Complicating matters, Tomorrow Ltd was sold to Progetto 11 in March. As previously reported, Progetto 11 is the holding company for Italian e-commerce platform The Level Group, which has collaborated with brands like Palm Angels, Herno, and Off-White. Former CEO and founder of Tomorrow, Stefano Martinetto, stepped down after the sale concluded.
Since then, the Coperni founders had been attempting to repurchase their brand from Progetto 11. “Our view is based on what we found when we arrived [at the] end of March: a business already in the middle of a broader dispute about ownership and governance, lacking funding, also resulting in the cancellation of the last fashion show, and founders seeking to reacquire control,” Progetto 11 stated in a release at the time.
In June, Progetto 11 clarified that Coperni has been controlled by two entities: holding company Coperni UK Limited, which holds the license with Tomorrow, and subsidiary Coperni SAS, the main French operating company overseeing day-to-day operations and employing the teams.
Tomorrow acted as a licensor and distributor across its portfolio of brands, receiving all revenues and paying royalties to brands based on their individual deals. Tomorrow would also reimburse brands for costs incurred outside of design—like producing fashion shows or campaigns—but as Tomorrow’s wholesale business faltered due to challenging industry circumstances, Coperni claimed the company ceased paying Coperni’s revenue share and reimbursements.
In fiscal 2024, Tomorrow’s turnover plummeted 34% to £8.4 million, while gross profit margin decreased from 76% in 2023 to 41% year-on-year. The company’s operating losses mounted, surging 28% year-on-year to £7.5 million. (Tomorrow had not submitted its fiscal 2025 earnings to Companies House by the time of the sale.)
Tomorrow’s issues first surfaced when Coperni abruptly canceled its Fall/Winter 2026 show at Paris Fashion Week. In March, Martine Rose (also part of the Tomorrow portfolio) issued a statement, explaining she was unable to produce her upcoming collection due to unforeseen circumstances.