The Galeria branch on the Zeil will close in early 2024. The counterpart at the main station can continue. Wiesbaden, Darmstadt and Offenbach also lose business.
The former Karstadt on Frankfurt’s Zeil is scheduled to close at the end of January 2024. The department store group Galeria Karstadt Kaufhof plans to close 52 of the 129 branches, the group’s general works council announced on Monday. Six Hessian houses will also be affected by the savings.
240 employees in Frankfurt affected by closure
The closure of the Zeil branch comes a year earlier than agreed in an earlier agreement. This was confirmed by Verdi union secretary Katja Deusser of FR. “Closing a year early is a slap in the face for employees. Some had hoped that things would continue after 2025 – at least on a smaller scale.” Almost 240 employees are affected. “But the people who work in the shops that don’t belong to the Galeria – like in the Asian shop – are also losing their jobs.”
The Frankfurt branch remained closed on Monday afternoon due to a works meeting. The Galeria at the Hauptwache (formerly Kaufhof) is to be retained. With the announcement, the future of department stores is not final. The creditors’ meeting now also has to approve the restructuring concept on March 27th.
Wiesbaden and Darmstadt each lose a Galeria branch
But the department store group also had bad news for other Hessian cities on Monday. Six of the 14 branches that still exist are to be closed. According to the announcement, Offenbach and the Wiesbaden branch in Kirchgasse will be hit by the end of June this year. At the end of January 2024, in addition to the Frankfurt branch, Hanau, Limburg and the Darmstadt branch at the White Tower will follow.
In addition to the one at the Frankfurt Hauptwache, the eight remaining locations are Bad Homburg, Darmstadt at the Luisencenter, Wiesbaden at Mauritiusplatz, the branch in the Main-Taunus-Zentrum and in Fulda, Gießen and Kassel.
Played with employees’ fears for a long time
Initial reactions to the plans were one of disappointment. Wiesbaden’s Mayor Gert-Uwe Mende (SPD) said: “It’s hard to bear.” Until recently, employees in all branches had hoped that closures would spare them. The Verdi union had repeatedly criticized the fact that people’s fears were being played with because the content of a closure list was only known within the group.
