The successful dance bar ‘Madame Moustache’ has found in the JRP (Judicial Reorganisation Procedure) a shield against the blows of fate.
It's possible to combine a love of partying with rigorous management. It's a challenge that Maud Partouche has been determined to meet since she set up Madame Moustache in 2010, a dance bar in the city centre that has become a hotspot for Brussels nightlife. Concerts, themed evenings, cabarets... the venue quickly found its audience and proved to be a real success. ‘From the outset, we've always wanted to be self-financing and avoid taking out loans,’ says the native Parisian, who saw Brussels as the ideal city in which to develop her projects.
But from March 2020 onwards, the bar suffered the full impact of Covid. Forced to close its doors, Madame Moustache reopened for 7 weeks between June and October of the same year. Not enough time to get back on track. "We'd already been through the attacks in 2017 and the consequences of the pedestrianisation of the centre. But this was impossible. I didn't have the cash flow to cover 18 months' rent without any income", explains Maud Partouche.
A textbook case of the nightlife sector
Facing over €240,000 in debt and negative equity of €35,000, she and her business partner Philippe Fatien turned to the French-speaking Business Court of Brussels to seek protection from creditors through a judicial reorganisation procedure (JRP). Represented by Cédric Alter and Fryderyck de Peslin Lachert of the law firm Janson, they submitted a business continuity plan after a six-month reprieve. "Madame Moustache is a textbook case. Between monthly VAT payments, Sabam rights and other recurring costs, many others in the hospitality industry have found themselves stuck, not by profitability issues, but by a temporary problem of debt control", explains Fryderyck de Peslin Lachert, who is also a lawyer for the Brussels By Night Federation, which groups together the nightlife sector in Brussels.
The provisional budget presented to the court was based on several sources of income. In addition to a Covid bonus (Tetra), Madame Moustache expanded its activities by adding daytime terrace service. The manager had understood that diversifying the use of the venue was key to profitability. ‘Between temporary rentals for film shoots, spaces for dance schools, weddings, companies... the place lives almost 24 hours a day’, she explains.
Two JRPs in 3 years
Once Covid was over, Madame Moustache instantly regained success. "We were extremely happy. We could follow the plan very easily, even to the point of considering early repayment of our creditors". But in September 2022, just as the company was about to close its best financial year ever, a new disaster befell Madame Moustache. An accidental fire destroyed almost the entire premises. Negotiations with the insurance company proved to be long and difficult. Maud Partouche quickly turned to Fryderyck de Peslin Lachert again, and embarked on her second JRP in less than three years. ‘It's perfectly possible under Belgian law, provided that this second procedure does not prejudice the rights acquired by the creditors in the first,’ he clarifies.
An expert... and humane court
Maud Partouche recalls those moments with a certain emotion. "For someone who makes it a point of honour not to have any debts, embarking on such a process is always uncomfortable. But for both JRPs, I was surprised by the humanity of the court. Every time I left, I felt relief rather than guilt". Fryderyck de Peslin Lachert agrees. "Generally speaking, the court has a very supportive attitude. Rather than adopting excessively restrictive positions, it sees itself as a last line of defence against bankruptcy, a remedy that can save what can still be saved.
The right timing
This empathy is the result of a good understanding of situations rather than any kind of sentimentality. Between the virus and the fire damage, Maud Partouche felt that she was in no way responsible for the blows of fate that struck her establishment, which she had made a real commercial success. ' The court relies on a meticulous analysis of the case files and the very real economic expertise of its judges,” says Fryderyck de Peslin Lachert, who is proud to have helped keep alive a venue that otherwise faced years of inactivity. He also stresses the importance of timing. ‘The liabilities must be maximised at the time the application is submitted, in order to broaden its impact, while not delaying too long so as not to fall into a scenario of bankruptcy or permanent closure’.
A great deal of resilience
Madame Moustache was also able to count on the understanding of her suppliers. First and foremost the brewer Alken-Maes, to whom she sublets the space. However, between disputes with insurers, reconstruction permits and renovation works, it took a lot of resilience
– and constant encouragement from her lawyer –
to keep her from giving up. "Today, the bar is back in business. But with the ongoing repayment, I feel like I'm working just to save my first baby," says the mother-of-one. Between her tattoo studio and her events business, the Parisian also runs several other companies. "I'm not involved in politics at all. But I do wonder about the logic of a system where it's more profitable to close for several days a week than to give people work. These days, you spend more time checking paperwork than actually developing your business,”
she adds, without losing any of her enthusiasm. Let's keep the party going!