The merger of Karstadt and Kaufhof will give the two ailing Department store giant, in competition with online retailers and shopping malls, more enforcement power.
Germany’s last two major store chains Karstadt and Kaufhof Were together. The new retail giant will have a Europe-wide 243 locations and a total of around 32 000 employees, as the Austrian Karstadt-owner Signa and the canadian Department store owner Hudson’s Bay Company (HBC) announced on Tuesday officially. The competent Cartel authorities, however, have to agree.
Officially, the talk is of a “merger of equals”. But Karstadt CEO Stephan Fanderl will take over the management of the warehouse group. And also the majority of the shares of the new company is located in the future, when the Signa-Holding company of the Karstadt owner René Benko: Signa receives 50.01 percent, HBC 49.99 percent. The groups do not Express themselves in the communication on the future of the brand name. According to information from the German press Agency, both Karstadt, as well as Galeria Kaufhof will remain as brands.
Locations in the whole of Europe
Under the umbrella of a new Holding company, not only the German Kaufhof and Karstadt are now United with the branches, but also the Karstadt Sports stores, the European branches of the Outlet chain Saks Off 5th, the Galeria Inno Department stores in Belgium, the recently established Hudson’s Bay Department stores in the Netherlands, as well as a number of Internet vendors. Of the merger, the two chains are hoping to improve their competitive position. Them the success of discounters such as Primark and Online for years-to provide retailers, such as Amazon or Zalando, but also the competition of the major shopping centres.
Particularly critical is the Situation currently in Kaufhof. The Cologne-based fight since the Acquisition by HBC the end of 2015, with declines in sales and red Numbers. Karstadt has managed after a hard rehabilitation, under the leadership of Fanderls just the return in the black. The merger and the resulting consolidation of purchasing power should enable Kaufhof and Karstadt to get better terms from suppliers.
Cartel office is a significant part of the examination
In addition, according to the assessment of industry experts in the administrative, data processing and logistics considerable sums of money could be saved. Open the were house had chains, first of all, whether in the course of the merger, branch closures are planned. Also admitted to a possible reduction there is no information. In a word, the competition authorities have a say in the matter. Cartel office President Andreas Mundt, announced to the merger plans, in any case, under the microscope: “We are on an extremely extensive and time-consuming procedure.” It is both the consequences for the customers and the suppliers need to be checked. You should only consider the stationary trade, but also in Online trading. “We have never had a case where we had to us to this extent with these issues,” said Mundt. The trade Union Verdi had already known the merger to be stressed conversations, that for you in the case of a merger of three subjects in the foreground: “the coverage rate of collective agreements, employment security, and site backup”.
hb/iw (dpa)