The men’s fashion company and seven subsidiaries go bankrupt.
(Photo: Ahlers AG)
Herford The economic problems in the German fashion industry are getting more and more companies into trouble. The men’s fashion manufacturer Ahlers announced on Monday that it would file for insolvency on behalf of Ahlers AG at the District Court of Bielefeld due to impending insolvency. According to the company, bankruptcy applications are also planned for seven German subsidiaries. The companies from abroad, on the other hand, are currently not affected.
The reason given by company boss Stella Ahlers was the business development that was below planning. The consequences of the corona pandemic and the associated disrupted supply chains, the general reluctance to buy, high inflation and bankruptcies in retail made the step inevitable, said Ahlers. Nevertheless, she sees future options for the company.
With brands such as Baldessarini, Pierre Cardin, Pioneer and Otto Kern, Ahlers AG generated sales of around 171 million euros in the past 2021/22 financial year. The revenues were thus well below the pre-corona level of 207 million euros. Ahlers currently employs around 1700 people.
Around 400 of them are employed by Ahlers and the seven companies that have also filed for insolvency: Ahlers PC, Ahlers Retail, Ahlers Zentralverwaltung, Ahlers Vertrieb, Pioneer Berufsbekleidung, Pioneer Jeans-Beclothing and Baldessarini. They receive insolvency money from the Federal Employment Agency for the months of April, May and June.
>> Read also: Fashion companies restructure themselves through bankruptcies
Just last week, the fashion manufacturer Gerry Weber announced that it would apply to the Essen district court to initiate proceedings under the law on the stabilization and restructuring framework for companies (StaRUG) in order to accelerate the company’s financial restructuring process. The aim of the StaRUG procedure is for entrepreneurs to be able to restructure their business without having to go through insolvency proceedings.
At the same time, the German retail business of Gerry Weber Retail GmbH is to be restructured with the help of insolvency proceedings under self-administration.
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