Coperni has ceased operations after months of trying to resolve a dispute with Tomorrow over unpaid sums. The shutdown leaves Arnaud Vaillant and Sébastien Meyer ending an eight-year run with a brand they said they still wanted to keep building, even after court protection in June.
Vaillant and Meyer said in a personal memo that they had been unable to fix the dispute, and thanked the Fédération de la Haute Couture et de la Mode, stores, buyers, press, celebrities, models, and other industry figures for their support. They added: “These eight years have been extraordinary” and “Coperni has always been a collective adventure, and we are immensely proud of what we have created.”
Tomorrow and Progetto 11
In March, Tomorrow Ltd was sold to Progetto 11, the holding company for The Level Group, and Stefano Martinetto stepped down after the sale was completed. Coperni had been trying to buy back the brand from Progetto 11, while Progetto 11 said the label was already facing ownership and governance disputes, lacked funding, and had its last fashion show canceled.
Coperni said Tomorrow had terminated its licensing agreement in place. Under that setup, Tomorrow acted as licensor and distributor across its brands, collected revenues, then paid royalties and reimbursed costs such as fashion shows or campaigns. Coperni said Tomorrow stopped paying its revenue share and reimbursements as Tomorrow's wholesale business faltered.
June protection in Paris
In June, Coperni secured protection from the Paris Court to help the brand continue operating after several months of pending payments owed by Tomorrow. The company later abruptly canceled its Fall/Winter 2026 show at Paris Fashion Week, before revealing it had ceased operations.
Fiscal 2024 numbers help explain why the dispute turned severe: Tomorrow's turnover fell 34% to £8.4 million, gross profit margin dropped from 76% in 2023 to 41%, and operating losses rose 28% to £7.5 million. Arnaud Vaillant and Sébastien Meyer still said, “As the world becomes increasingly challenging, particularly in the fashion industry, we believe there is still so much to create and reinvent.”
What remains for Coperni
“Innovation has always been our passion and a priority in everything we do,” they said, adding: “We look ahead with optimism and plenty of ideas, and cannot wait to share them with you.” For now, the practical question is whether Coperni can be bought back from Progetto 11 or restarted under new control, after a collapse that followed unpaid sums, a terminated licensing agreement, and a court-protected attempt to keep trading.
