The Aschaffenburg District Court approved protective shield proceedings for the retail company Gries Deco Company GmbH on Monday and appointed a provisional administrator and a provisional creditors’ committee, a court spokeswoman said.
The insolvency protection procedure is intended to protect companies in crisis from access by creditors. The management can continue to manage the company responsibly and restructure it independently. However, a lawyer is assigned to act as a so-called trustee.
The branches of the decoration and furnishing retailer Depot can be found in many German city centers. However, the retail chain from Niedernberg in Lower Franconia with its 500 stores has already had difficulties in recent years.
Aggressive Expansion
After the Swiss retail giant Migros entered the market in 2009, Depot pursued an aggressive expansion course. The number of branches rose from 109 to 500, and sales rose dramatically. However, profits did not grow at the same pace; on the contrary, the company made losses. In 2019, Migros sold its 90 percent stake in the home accessories provider to the previous company boss and founder’s grandson Christian Gries. He had previously held a ten percent stake in the company.
According to company information, Gries Deco Company GmbH recently generated sales of around 390 million euros. No information on profit or loss was provided. The company had around 4,400 employees and more than 300 branches in Germany.
“We will very quickly approach everyone involved – especially employees, landlords, suppliers and business partners – and discuss the next steps together,” said Christian Gries, according to the statement.
The company’s business operations are to continue without restrictions. The wages and salaries of employees in Germany are secured until September. The aim is to have a plan for the company’s reorientation by the turn of the year at the latest.
Half of Austria’s locations under scrutiny
The protective shield procedure will not have any significant impact on the group’s 34 depot locations in Switzerland in the foreseeable future. For the locations in Austria, the aim is to continue to operate a large proportion of the branches. The restructuring expert Rainer Schrems, managing director of the Austrian branches since the end of February, had already taken the first steps in March, media reported at the beginning of March.
At the time, it was said that 25 of the 49 Depot branches in Austria would be put under review. “As a precautionary measure,” as it was said at the time, 200 of the 400 employees were pre-registered with the AMS. A major sale began.
