First takeover candidate already cancels Galeria bid

Department store group Galeria Karstadt Kaufhof wants to sell up to ninety of its German locations. This is proving to be not so easy: the first interested candidate has already dropped out.

Unacceptable conditions

Galeria is going through some rough times: the chain had already planned to divest 40 to 45 stores, but this week it has doubled that number – threatening two thirds of its 131 department stores. The company is now awaiting bids from interested buyers. Just to be clear: the group’s Belgian branch Inno will not be affected, sailing an independent (and profitable) course since last year.

Galeria had been in talks with a first candidate since November: Markus Schön, the owner of online retailer buero.de. The entrepreneur showed an interest in 47 shops in small and medium-sized towns and also wanted to take over up to 5,500 employees with him. However, he claims that the conditions have changed, and that they are no longer acceptable. Exit buero.de, then.

Fortunately, Galeria Karstadt Kaufhof did receive another takeover offer in the meantime, German news agency DPA reports. It concerns an as yet unknown candidate, who wants to take over “a number” of branches. How many and which ones are also not known at the moment. The department store group expects to receive further bids over the Christmas period. In January, it would then announce exactly which stores are closing.