Several branches of the Galeria Karstadt Kaufhof are about to close due to the threat of insolvency. But Buero.de would like to take over 47 locations. Which ones are they?
Cologne – The future of Galeria Karstadt Kaufhof is once again at risk. To avert a possible insolvency, the department store chain re-initiated the protective shield procedure at the end of October. The result: done 40 branches of the Galeria Karstadt Kaufhof are about to close. This is also attracting other investors. Markus Schön, head of online retailer Buero.de, has announced that he would like to take over 47 locations. What are they and how realistic is the acquisition?
Closures at Galeria Karstadt Kaufhof: 47 branches could be saved
According to Bild list, which investor Markus has already confirmed, Buero.de would like to take over the following Galeria Karstadt Kaufhof:
- North Rhine-Westphalia: Aachen (Kaufhof), Euskirchen (Gallery 2.0), Duren (Kaufhof), Leverkusen (Kaufhof), Neuss (Kaufhof), Siburg (Kaufhof), Siegen (Karstadt) and Paderborn (Kaufhof)
- Baden-Wurttemberg: Freiburg, Leonberg, Loerrach, Heidelberg, Constance, Singen, Offenburg, Esslingen
- Bayern: Aschaffenburg, Augsburg, Bamberg, Kempten, Memmingen, Bayreuth, Coburg, Erlangen, Landshut, Regensburg, Rosenheim, Schweinfurt
- Brandenburg: Cottobus
- Hesse: Bad Homburg, Fulda, Gießen, Limburg, Sulzbach
- Mecklenburg-Vorpommern: Wismar
- Lower Saxony: Goslar, Göttingen, Lüneburg, Celle, Oldenburg
- Rhineland-Palatinate: Speyer, Bad Kreuznach
- Saxony: Chemnitz
- Saxony-Anhalt: Halle, Magdeburg
- Thuringia: Erfurt
- As of November 28, 2022; All statements without guarantee
Galeria Karstadt Kaufhof: Buero.de wants to take over the subsidiaries, but changes its name
They should Buero.de can take over some branches of the Galeria Karstadt Kaufhofthen these would continue under a new name, explains company boss Markus Schön merkur.de. Accordingly, the previous The Galeria Kartstadt Kaufhof department store will be called “Schön hier” in future.. The brand rights, internet domains and logo have already been secured. All of the approximately 5,500 employees should be able to stay on in the event of a takeover.
Overall, Buero.de is planning an “investment volume in the three-digit million” for the takeover and redesign. However, the online retailer does not want to buy the premises of the Galeria Karstadt Kaufhof, only to rent them out. For this, the entire design and partly also the concept of the department stores should change. The digital offering would play a bigger role. As a result, not all sizes would be available, but could be delivered to the customer’s home next day if required. In order to “provide a feeling of home and home”, regional products would also be offered.
Buero.de approaches Galeria Karstadt Kaufhof – first meeting expected
However, it is currently unclear whether the takeover will actually take place. According to Buero.de, a hearing scheduled for November 14 between the insolvency administrator of the Galeria Karstadt Kaufhof and the online retailer has been “canceled on surprisingly short notice”, as various media reports. As a sign of goodwill, Buero.de then said on Nov. 18 that it would comment on the subsidiary acquisitions only very limitedly. A broad “one-sidedness of the obligation of confidentiality – buero.de must remain silent, Galeria Karstadt Kaufhof may speak – is accepted”, explained company boss Markus Schön.
This seems to have paid off, because the negotiations between Galeria Karstadt Kaufhof and Buero.de should start soon. “We are delighted that the talks will take place in the near future,” CEO Markus Schön said on Sunday (November 28). According to that mdr the suggested dates have already been exchanged. The meeting should then address, among other things, “the details of the existing lease contracts, the contractual constellations of the houses concerned and the inventories”. Buero.de has therefore confirmed this information.
Galeria Karstadt Kaufhof: Which branches have to close and when?
In particular, company boss Miguel Müllenbach had announced that the branch network of the Galeria Karstadt Kaufhof of 131 department stores was to be “reduced by at least a third”. Including some branches North Rhine-Westphalia. But we don’t know much more. “It is not yet clear which houses will be closed,” said Arndt Geiwitz, insolvency administrator at Galeria. dpa on November 10th. “We expect it to be in January [2023] in the next year there will be clarity on this”. Discussions with various stakeholders who are interested in engagements at the Galeria locations will be held in the near future.
Only at Cologne Karstadt branch on Breite Strasse it is already clear that it will close, at least in the medium term. The owner had announced the demolition and new construction there, but without the participation of the Galeria. (os with dpa) Correct and independent information about what is happening in NRW – here our free 24RHEIN-Newsletter Subscribe to. Note: This article was last updated on November 28th. What’s New: Added details about possible takeover and first encounter.
