Napoleon Perdis' cosmetics brand has collapsed and is now up for sale, with hundreds of jobs on the line.
The company appointed administrators from Worrells Solvency and Forensic Accountants on Thursday morning, with corporate documents showing Perdis has been facing financial difficulties for several years, running at a $1.6 million loss in 2014 and a $154,808 loss in 2015.
All 56 of the company’s stores will remain closed for stocktake today before re-opening tomorrow as the sale of the company begins.
The well-known cosmetics brand was started by the Greek Australian make-up artist in 1995 with his first concept store in Sydney, which expanded out of a makeup academy.
Throughout the years, Napolean focused on the international market, particularly the US, where it traded for over a decade and was stocked in high-end department stores including Bergdorf Goodman, Niemen Marcus, and Nordstrom until it was forced to pull out of the market in 2015.
Last year, Perdis began closing stores in Australia and pulled products out of David Jones in an attempt to downsize the business.
The company is owned by Napolean Perdis, his wife Soula-Marie Perdis and his brother Emanuel Perdis.
Perdis and his wife are now based in Athens and in a statement released by Worrells Solvency on Thursday, Perdis said, “The brand is still in high demand from our customers and is more innovative than ever, so by restructuring the business in this manner, we believe, puts it in a prime position to continue to evolve through continued trade or in a sale,” the statement reads.
Adding, “My family and I are 100 percent committed to achieving the best outcome for all stakeholders. We are fortunate that throughout our business, we have staff and teams who have not only underpinned the business success but who are our extended family.”
