According to the credit protection associations, the stove manufacturer has around 13.8 million euros in liabilities. The traditional company will be continued following the renovation. The creditors – mainly banks – will be offered a quota of 20 percent, the management said in a press release.
Market for ovens collapsed
The number of creditors is estimated at around 70. There are 38 employees at the Puch location. The reason for the bankruptcy is that the market for pellet stoves and fireplaces in the core markets of Austria and Germany has collapsed sharply following several years of boom, according to the company. Many house builders – especially in rural areas – have switched their heating systems, fireplaces and kitchen stoves to wood and pellets due to the skyrocketing prices for gas, electricity and oil. After record-breaking orders in the years 2020 to 2023, dealers now have high inventories.
“Painful, but no alternative”
“The company’s tense situation might no longer withstand the rapid collapse of the market and is now leaving a liquidity gap that cannot be closed in the short term. The insolvency application is painful, but from the management’s point of view there is no alternative,” said managing director Martin Schubert. However, products, service and spare parts would still be available.
According to the company register (“WirtschaftsCompass”), the company is almost entirely owned by the Reischl Private Foundation, which also owns the drill and milling cutter manufacturer Alpen-Maykestag in Puch. Since 2014, Haas+Sohn’s production has taken place mainly in Hungary and the Czech Republic via a subsidiary, and there are sales companies in Germany and France.
