The Ghent Enterprise Court has invalidated the restructuring plan for the beauty academy operated by Lesley-Ann Poppe and her husband, Kevin Lebreton. Judges found that the venture halted payments in April 2025 and kept the insolvency process delayed for months while dealing with tax authorities and transferring assets to private ownership.
The financial troubles surrounding the Beauty Academy of Lesley-Ann Poppe and Kevin Lebreton trace back to the spring of 2025. According to court findings, five staff members went without pay, rent for two business locations lapsed, and unpaid invoices topped 50,000 euros while the bank account held barely 3,000 euros (as detailed in the HBVL report). Faced with mounting liabilities, the couple initiated a judicial reorganization procedure in a bid to rescue the struggling venture through a revamped business model geared toward digital market conditions.
Ghent Court Rulings Reject Restructuring Claims
Judges dismantled the narrative that the entrepreneurs had worked tirelessly for months to keep the academy afloat. The court pointed to a pattern of defaulting on statutory obligations, noting default judgments for unpaid wages and subcontractor bills, alongside instances where necessary salon equipment was handed over directly to creditors instead of settling accounts. An enterprise that genuinely wishes to save itself and reorganize with a view to continuity does not allow itself to be driven out of two rented premises, does not allow itself to be condemned repeatedly by default with respect to employees and subcontractors, and does not give equipment necessary for its activities in exchange for the payment of invoices
, the tribunal stated, determining that management showed disinterest in running the business responsibly starting in March 2025.
Tax Disputes and the Five-Month Insolvency Delay
Even as operations faltered, the formal bankruptcy filing did not occur for another five months. Investigators concluded that the delay was engineered to buy time for negotiations with the tax administration. The Special Tax Inspectorate subsequently demanded more than one million euros in back taxes, a fiscal dispute that eventually led to a settlement with authorities.
By moving the official date of cessation of payments back to April 2025, the court opened the door for the appointed insolvency administrator to challenge asset transfers executed during the intervening months.
Jaguar Transfer and Stock Liquidation Scrutiny
Among the contested transactions is the July 2025 transfer of a Jaguar compact luxury SUV from the distressed non-profit organization to Lebreton for 18,000 euros. The court noted that no cash changed hands for the vehicle; instead, the cost was balanced against credit entries generated by prior accounting adjustments. While the tribunal did not rule on the legality of the structure, it deemed the asset shift into private hands difficult to reconcile with claims that the owners believed in the viability of the academy until the end.
Similar questions surround a massive inventory of beauty supplies and devices originally valued at approximately 595,000 euros. The couple attempted to liquidate this stock during the summer of 2025 to clear debts, but reported generating only 100,000 euros from the sales, attributing the shortfall to reputation damage from criticism regarding product origins. The administrator now holds the authority to investigate whether additional funds from that stock liquidation should have flowed into the bankrupt entity, while more than thirty creditors—including former instructors, energy suppliers, social security agencies, and legal counsel—remain unpaid.
