The encyclopedia · Finance & Accounting · Financial decision · 2010–2026
One customer's bankruptcy ends Old Works — the ¥2bn apparel maker files
Nagoya ODM/OEM firm Old Works topped ¥2bn in March 2024, but a client's July 2025 bankruptcy burned its cash — it stopped on July 17, 2026, ¥910m in debt.
Old Works · 2026-07-17
What happened
Old Works was founded in 2010 in Nagoya and built an apparel business around ODM/OEM production for other companies, alongside its own brands sold online and an import-agency line. By the fiscal year ended March 2024 it was recording revenue of more than ¥2 billion.
The break came from outside. In July 2025 a business partner collapsed, and the money owed to Old Works went bad with it. The resulting bad debt squeezed the company's cash position until it could no longer keep operating.
On 17 July 2026 Old Works stopped operations and handed the winding-up to its lawyers, preparing to file for bankruptcy; the same measures were taken at its related company Old Works Frontier. The two companies' combined liabilities are estimated at around ¥910 million. The firm that manufactured clothes for others was ended not by its own sales but by one counterparty's failure.
Why it happened
- OEM/ODM economics concentrate receivables in a few clients; one of them failing turned revenue on the books into a hole in the bank.
- There was no buffer: profitability had been weak and the company's debts already exceeded its assets, so one bad debt went straight to cash flow and within a year the business stopped.
- The related company fell with the parent — the group's obligations were entangled enough that one counterparty took both down.
The lesson
Concentration risk collects in cash: Old Works sold ¥2bn of ODM/OEM apparel from Nagoya, but one client's July 2025 bankruptcy burned the receivables — by July 2026 the ¥910m-debt group was filing.
Aftermath
Old Works and related company Old Works Frontier stopped operations on 17 July 2026 and are preparing bankruptcy filings, with combined liabilities estimated at around ¥910 million. The winding-up is being handled by the companies' lawyers.
Sources
- Fu-keiki — "Nagoya apparel wholesaler 'Old Works' heading to bankruptcy, ¥900m debt", July 2026 (Old Works Inc., apparel manufacturing/wholesale based in Nagoya, founded 2010; ODM/OEM business, own-brand online sales, import agency; revenue over ¥2 billion for FY ended March 2024; business partner's bankruptcy in July 2025 caused funds to go bad, cash flow strained; stopped operations July 17, 2026, left aftermath to lawyers, preparing bankruptcy filing; related company Old Works Frontier treated the same; combined debt of two companies about ¥910 million)
- TBS NEWS DIG — "[Bankruptcy] Apparel wholesaler to file for bankruptcy, business partner's bankruptcy… large bad debt as trigger, combined debt with related companies ¥910 million", 21 July 2026 (Nagoya apparel wholesaler Old Works and related company Old Works Frontier preparing bankruptcy filing; combined debt of two companies ¥910 million; large bad debt from business partner's bankruptcy as trigger)
- Reaitime News — "The reason for Old Works' bankruptcy — ¥2bn revenue, one other company's collapse…", July 2026 (Old Works FY March 2024 annual revenue about ¥2.048 billion; combined liabilities with related company Old Works Frontier about ¥910 million; bad debt from one business partner's July 2025 bankruptcy pushed cash flow over the edge; profitability had been weak before that and the company had been in negative equity with debts exceeding assets; operations already stopped 17 July 2026, bankruptcy preparation reported 21 July 2026)
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