Cuts, debts and a recovery plan in court: a well-known homeware and decoration brand has decided to close its operation in Spain, where it operates eight stores, in a measure that the company considers essential to ensure the viability of the business in Portugal. Gato Preto presented a recovery plan in court and says that its implementation could safeguard a significant part of jobs.
The decision is communicated at a time when the retailer is facing strong financial pressure and a negotiation process with creditors, after having resorted to the Special Revitalization Process (PER).
On the table is a restructuring that involves more than 300 creditors, including workers, banks and suppliers, with debt claimed in the order of 50 million euros, according to information already released as part of the process.
Closing in Spain to “concentrate resources” of the brand in Portugal
To ECO, the company frames its exit from the Spanish market as a way to concentrate resources and reduce operational losses, reinforcing the ability to keep the brand active in Portugal.
Until now, Gato Preto had 39 stores in total: 31 in Portugal and eight in Spain, numbers that have been mentioned in previous pieces about PER and the brand’s retail structure.
In the plan, the company says it wants to maintain a presence “across the entire continental territory”, and also points to a stronger focus on the online channel, described as more efficient and aligned with current market demands.
Business failures and losses in 2024
Recent results help explain the urgency: turnover will have fallen by half since 2022, reaching 21.3 million euros in 2024, the year in which the company recorded losses of 14.9 million.
The use of PER was justified by the company with “economic and financial pressures” accumulated in recent years and the need to deeply review the operating model to stabilize and revitalize the activity.
The brand also highlights that 2026 is a symbolic year, completing 40 years of activity, which reinforces the view that the strategy involves preserving the value of the brand and continuity in Portugal.
Creditors, workers and what could happen next
The plan presented still has to be approved by creditors, and the company does not detail, for now, all the financial engineering associated with the restructuring, only pointing out that the PER will represent an advantage in the face of a liquidation scenario.
Regarding workers, Gato Preto states that it intends to safeguard a significant part of jobs and guarantees the full satisfaction of the credits of workers and former workers, in compliance with the law.
For consumers, DECO has been reminding that, even during a PER, rights remain, including the obligation to deliver the product or refund under legal terms, recommending attention to deadlines and documentation.
From here onwards, and according to , the outcome depends on the vote/adhesion of creditors and the execution of the plan on the ground, with the closure of stores in Spain as one of the key measures to ease the operation and concentrate the strategy on the Portuguese market.
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