As of: January 29, 2024, 8:52 a.m
By: Amy Walker
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According to media reports, the Berlin department store KaDeWe has now also filed for bankruptcy.
The reason for the imbalance is Signa's bankruptcy.
Berlin – Probably the most famous department store in Germany, the Kaufhaus des Westens (KaDeWe), is bankrupt.
Several media outlets reported this unanimously over the weekend.
The company itself has not yet confirmed the process.
Nevertheless, the insolvency was definitely to be expected: The umbrella company of the KaDeWe Group is Signa Retail Selection, which went bankrupt in November and which also included the once again insolvent company Galeria Karstadt Kaufhof.
Oberpollinger and Alsterhaus belong to KaDeWe
In addition to the KaDeWe in Berlin, the group also includes the Munich Oberpollinger and the Alterhaus in Hamburg.
As
Bild
reported at the weekend, the approximately 1,900 employees are worried about their jobs - but it is unlikely that the luxury stores will actually close completely.
According to the Süddeutsche Zeitung,
the KaDeWe Group is
still doing well - sales amount to 800 million euros per year.
The high rents charged by the Signa Group are again cited as a possible reason for the bankruptcy.
At both Galeria and Oberpollinger it became known at the end of 2023 that Signa was demanding horrendous rents from the department stores.
According to the
Handelsblatt
, Oberpollinger's rent was around 20 percent of sales.
The logo of the Kaufhaus des Westens (KaDeWe) behind a Christmas tree on shopping Sunday.
© Fabian Sommer/dpa
What will happen next for the KaDeWe Group is uncertain.
However, in all likelihood there will be a buyer for the luxury homes.
The Thailand-based Central Group owns 50 percent of the luxury department stores.
First, a court must approve the insolvency application, which, according to the SZ, was filed on Friday (January 26).