Israeli Fashion Chains Onot and Jump File Urgent Bankruptcy Protection Over 38 Million Shekel Debt

The established Israeli women's fashion chains Onot and Jump have filed an urgent request for a rehabilitation and stay of proceedings order at the Tel Aviv District Court due to severe insolvency. The companies, represented by attorneys Amit Lederman, Dorit Karni, and Wasim Sibat, revealed debts totaling approximately 38.2 million shekels against assets valued at about 32.5 million shekels. This legal move comes months after the tragic suicide of the group's founder, Yoav Shamay, on February 16, 2026, who was under intense financial pressure amid the deepening crisis.

The companies attribute their collapse to a combination of internal and external factors, including the impact of recent military operations "Iron Swords," "Stand Like Dubai," and "Lion's Roar," which severely reduced mall foot traffic and sales. Additional challenges included rising interest rates, growth of online commerce, and competition from international chains. The chains had to rely on selling older inventory at low margins due to cash flow shortages preventing new collections from clearing customs.

The financial distress led to the recent dismissal of 60 employees, with about 100 remaining staff. The number of stores shrank from a peak of over 100 to 44 at the time of filing, with plans to reduce further to 33 during the temporary operation period. Debt details show 16.2 million shekels owed to secured creditors Bank Leumi and Bank Hapoalim, 1.03 million shekels to tax and social authorities, 5.6 million shekels to employees (mostly covered by National Insurance), and 15.3 million shekels to general creditors including suppliers.

To prevent employee departures, Bank Hapoalim and Bank Leumi agreed to provide immediate interim financing of 650,000 shekels for June 2026 salary advances, classified as priority expenses. The companies seek a 60-day temporary operation period during which a trustee will attempt to find an investor or buyer to save the business. The submitted operation plan projects revenues of about 5.26 million shekels and a positive cash flow surplus of 500,000 shekels.

The financial difficulties have persisted for some time. In 2025, founder Yoav Shamay sought a structural solution, culminating in a non-binding memorandum of understanding with the publicly traded Golf Group in November 2025. Golf considered acquiring full ownership for an estimated 30 million shekels and conducted due diligence, but the negotiations ultimately failed, leaving the chains without financial backing.