Warenhäuser: Krisentreffen bei Galeria wegen Finanzierungsproblemen
Bei dem Händler sind in den vergangenen Monaten die Umsätze nach Handelsblatt-Informationen massiv eingebrochen. Ein 160 Millionen Euro schwerer Kredit soll weitgehend aufgebraucht sein.
Galeria, a major retailer, is facing significant financial difficulties according to internal sources. On Thursday evening, a crisis meeting was held among the shareholders, according to an insider. Around 8:30 PM, senior employees were informed. Should additional funds not be available soon, serious consequences are feared. A staff meeting was scheduled for 11 AM, sources in the company said.
The company initially declined to comment when asked for a statement. Galeria was supposed to benefit from a new loan of 160 million euros from the US company Gordon Brothers, which should provide room for a reorientation. However, a large portion of this money was already spent on repaying a loan and settling rent arrears. A significant sales decline of about 15% is reported for June, July, and August.
Even a 25% drop is expected by the end of September. Shareholders were reportedly still injecting money into the company at the end of August, allowing for the payment of August and September salaries. September salaries were only paid on September 30th, according to company circles. Of the 33 Galeria-owned stores, 11 are facing imminent rent deadlines, though no closures have been announced yet.
The company has been in poor financial shape since its third insolvency since 2020. In July, Galeria published a list of 33 stores under threat. Nine of these stores have their lease expiring soon, but no closures have been announced so far.
Written by urgent.news from Handelsblatt's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
