Ssense is entering its next phase. On February 18, Ssense’s founders received approval by the Quebec Superior Court to buy out the Canadian retailer. This approval follows last month’s news that Ssense’s founding family — CEO Rami Atallah and his co-founder brothers, Firas and Bassel — had won their bid to retain ownership of the company when it emerges from bankruptcy protection.
Now, the bankruptcy protection process will continue under the Atallahs. “After months of uncertainty, the closing of the transaction marks an important milestone and affirms our ability to continue building Ssense for the long term,” a spokesperson said in a statement. “Our priority throughout this process has been to sustain operations, protect jobs, and provide stability for our employees, customers, suppliers, and partners. With the transaction complete, we are moving forward with clarity and confidence. We remain committed to our purpose — moving culture forward and providing a platform to amplify the voices shaping it — and we’re grateful to our community for their support during this time.” (Ssense declined to comment further at this stage.)
Community support, though, has wavered over the past year. In August 2025, Ssense filed for bankruptcy protection with Canada’s Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act (CCAA). This came after the retailer laid off over 100 employees, amid struggles after the US enacted high tariffs on Canada. Customers complained online about being hit with additional fees on Ssense orders upon delivery, as well as delayed shipments and customer service difficulties as the year progressed. In September, Ssense won court approval to restructure the business under the founding family. All the while, brands were left in the lurch, with many waiting on hundreds of thousands of unpaid dollars, per August court documents. A group of lenders, which was owed about CA $113 million (USD $82.6 million), tried to block the buyout deal, pushing instead for a liquidation of the company in order to recoup more money.
Now that the retailer has a path forward, questions rise about what the future of the company will look like. Ssense has long been a destination to shop independent brands, operating as a discovery point for consumers keen to invest in smaller, growing fashion businesses not found in the major retailers. To maintain its allure, Ssense will need to keep prioritizing independent brands. “If it doesn’t continue to do so, then it will not be Ssense,” says Gary Wassner, CEO of factor Hilldun Corporation. “It might as well change its name and start from scratch.”
Keeping these designers on board, though, won’t be easy. Whereas brands are cautiously optimistic about Saks Global’s future largely by virtue of their relationships with and trust in Saks’s new leadership team, Ssense doesn’t have this advantage as it moves forward under its founders. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, Wassner says. “The founding vision of a company is usually its strongest,” he says. Without them, Wassner adds, companies can lose their identities and quickly become generic.
Experts are optimistic that this could provide the opportunity for a much-needed reset. “They got so big and need to recalibrate,” says luxury consultant Robert Burke. Neil Saunders, managing director and retail analyst at Globaldata, agrees. “There is still a big question mark over the purpose of Ssense and how it stands out in the market,” he says. “In its latter years, it became something of a confused jumble of brands that seemed to trade more off discounts and sales than having a distinct point of view.”
To rectify, Burke doesn’t anticipate a complete overhaul, but a refining of strategy. “I don’t see them making a dramatic merchandising change,” he says. “I think they’re going to pull it in and speak to who they know their customer is — and probably be more organic in their growth.”
