What? Jan Sikkes? In Friesland, where shopping areas have been emptying for some time, people cannot believe that the ‘markable’ Frisian textile company is now also bankrupt, says curator Jaap Vermeulen, who also lives there. According to the curator, the store where all kinds of fabrics are for sale – from imitation fur and flannel to waffle fabric and tricot – is important for the atmosphere in the inner cities of Sneek or Drachten, for example. The fact that the store may disappear from the street scene “hurts people”.
In 1934, Jan Sikkes already rode a cargo bike through the Frisian town of Workum to sell hats and caps. He eventually opened several shops and expanded his range to include fabrics, clothing and wallpaper. In the eighties he also opened branches outside Friesland. In its own words, the company then grew “out of its seams”. About five years ago, a tenth and last branch opened in Amersfoort. “We may no longer bring our fabrics to you by cargo bike (…), if it were up to us, we would be happy to welcome you in our stores for the next hundred years!” can still be read on the site.
‘Fabric geeks’
But if you want to buy a piece of fabric to sew yourself, you can no longer go to Jan Sikkes for this. The Leeuwarden court declared the company bankrupt earlier this week. All ten branches – in Assen, Drachten, Groningen, Leeuwarden, Sneek and Haarlem, among others – have been closed. More than a hundred employees – called “fabric geeks, interior enthusiasts, sewing experts and other creatives” by the company itself – will lose their jobs if a restart is not possible.
The current director, who is also called Jan Sikkes, “can’t handle it now” to NRC explain why his company went bankrupt, says an employee. The 2021 financial statements, which were filed just before the turn of the year, show that the company’s financial situation deteriorated significantly in the fall of 2022. The costs for purchasing and wages rose “considerably” last year.
Not enough fabric was sold, so the turnover was too low to compensate for the increased costs, says curator Vermeulen. According to him, personnel costs amounted to at least 50 percent of turnover. The company tried to generate more income last year by, for example, putting fabrics on sale. But that was not enough. Jan Sikkes suffered a loss of almost 600,000 euros on an annual turnover of more than 5.6 million. Another loss of more than 600,000 euros is expected to follow in the coming year.
In addition to higher costs and reduced sales, the company had to deal with high absenteeism among staff. According to Vermeulen, an average of 15 percent of the staff was sick or absent. Jan Sikkes says to it Noordhollands Dagblad that ‘good employees’ left and that it was difficult to find new staff. Due to staff shortages, other employees also got into trouble, according to the director. They got sick or became overwrought.
Possibly Jan Sikkes would have made it with more branches, thinks Vermeulen. The company stores the fabrics in a large warehouse in Sneek, the costs of which cannot be fully covered with only ten branches. That is possible with fifteen branches, says the curator, but Sikkes does not have enough staff for that.
According to Vermeulen, the bankruptcy news came as a surprise to many employees. This is also evident from messages on LinkedIn, where new employees recently proudly shared their new positions at the fabric trade. Only a few days after announcing her new job in a contribution, an employee writes in response under a congratulation: “Get back on the street, Jan Sikkes is bankrupt”, with a sad doll.
Next week it will become clear whether Jan Sikkes can make a restart. Vermeulen is currently in talks with interested parties for a takeover. He wouldn’t say how many there are. If a takeover fails, all remaining fabrics will be sold off.