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Ssense is filing for bankruptcy protection after what it described as an attempt by lenders to force a sale of the company, the Montreal-based e-tailer told employees in a letter reviewed by The Business of Fashion.
Chief executive Rami Atallah on Thursday said Ssense’s creditors want to put it up for sale under the Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act, a process similar to bankruptcy protection that allows corporations to restructure their finances.
Atallah went on to say that Ssense will fight a sale by filing its own CCAA application within 24 hours “to protect the company, keep control of our assets and operations, and fight for the future of the company,” according to the memo.
“Recently, we have worked closely with financial and legal advisors to develop our own restructuring plan to stabilize the business and rebuild it for the future,” Atallah said in the memo. “The court will decide which path we follow, likely within the next week. “Until then, our focus remains clear: protect value, stabilize the business, and set up a restructuring plan to secure our future.”
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Atallah attributed Ssense’s bankruptcy to the Trump administration’s trade policies, which have imposed 25 percent tariffs on goods imported from Canada. The closure of the “de minimus” exemption, which allowed packages worth less than $800 to enter the US duty free, came as a “surprise” to Ssense and directly contributed to its CCAA application. The change to de minimis is scheduled to go into effect on Friday.
The CCAA filing comes in what had already been a tough year for Ssense, which has been squeezed by a luxury slowdown that’s disproportionately impacted its mostly young, aspirational consumer base. Its sales fell 28 percent year over year in the first half of 2025, according to US debit and credit card data from Consumer Edge. In May, it laid off more than 100 employees across departments.
Atallah added that Ssense will continue to operate as usual, and keep paying salaries and benefits until further notice.
“We are here today because the rules of the game have changed,” Attallah said in the memo. “What happens next depends on the ruling of the CCAA proceedings, but our determination is unwavering. Now, more than ever, we need focus and commitment.”
