The Galeria Karstadt Kaufhof department store chain, an emblematic brand of German urban centers, will close 52 of its 129 stores, the company, which has been in trouble for several years, announced Monday.
“After intensive negotiations with donors and cities, there is no prospect of continued activity” for these 52 establishments, spread throughout Germany, the statement says.
Around 4,000 employees are threatened by these closures, as well as 300 positions located at the headquarters in Essen, in North Rhine-Westphalia (West) and in IT services.
These employees “will be offered to join another company”, promises Galeria, in the safeguard procedure from November 2022. A first wave of closures will take place on June 30, the second on January 31, 2024.
“It is a black day for the people of Galeria,” the Verdi union reacted in a press release. Calls for an “urgent” change in the course of the company, so that “employees pay the flute.”
“Employees pay for broken pots”
Seeking profitability, the chain, often compared to Galeries Lafayette stores in France, also plans to “deep modernize” its remaining 77 stores over the next three years, making them “a popular meeting point in the city.” . centers”.
These brands, with more than a hundred years, have been boiling for several years.
The impact of the pandemic has been compounded by the disgust of the Germans for this concept of general stores with a dusty image, supplanted by multi-brand shopping centers and e-commerce giants.
Galeria now wants to offer “attractive restaurant offers […] sewing workshops, dry cleaners or citizen services”. The subsidiaries will be more connected, autonomous and focused on local and regional needs, promises the press release.
“Department stores in Germany have a future,” says CEO Miguel Müllenbach, at a time of competition with e-commerce giants like Amazon.
Galeria Karstadt Kaufhof also suffered from the inflation caused by the Russian war in the Ukraine.
In 2020, a first bankruptcy filing was filed, resulting in 40 store closures and 4,000 job cuts.
Source: BFM TV
