The manufacturer from Bad Rodach has gotten into financial difficulties. Now a restructuring through insolvency under self-administration is pending.
(Photo: obs)
Dusseldorf The traditional children’s outfitter Haba is sliding deeper into the crisis. Haba Sales GmbH filed for self-administration insolvency at the Coburg district court, which was approved, the family business from Bad Rodach in Upper Franconia announced on Tuesday.
“The application for self-administration was anything but easy for us,” said managing director Mario Wilhelm on Tuesday. However, given the tense economic situation, it is the only possibility for the Haba Group to quickly return to its former strength.
The manufacturer of toys, fashion and furniture – known for its wooden toys and games such as “Orchard” – had already taken drastic restructuring steps. At the beginning of August it was announced that the well-known children’s brand Jako-o would be discontinued at the beginning of 2024. The business area has no future “due to long-term economic problems”.
At an emotional works meeting, Wilhelm made it clear: Continuing Jako-o “would fundamentally endanger the existence of the company”. Haba also announced large-scale job cuts without giving a specific number. Negotiations are currently taking place with the works council. Insiders fear that up to a third of the approximately 1,800 jobs at the headquarters could be lost.
Haba has now appointed restructuring expert Martin Mucha as general representative. He said there was a good chance of putting the Haba Family Group back on solid footing. Attorney Tobias Sorg was appointed as the provisional administrator.
Haba is discontinuing its Jako-o mail order business. It recently suffered from delivery problems.
(Photo: Haba)
These are the toughest cuts for the family business in its 85-year history. “In recent years, some bad decisions have been made that subsequently turned out to be wrong. We have to admit that and correct it,” said Wilhelm, who has worked at Haba since 2010 and was appointed to the management of the Haba Family Group in May.
In addition, there were sharp increases in material costs, bottlenecks in the supply chain and a failed IT conversion. All of this led to major problems with order processing and a sharp drop in sales.
The union is worried. The workforce is angry and disappointed. Entire families are often employed at Haba, said Nicole Ehrsam from IG Metall Coburg. The extent of the economic difficulties surprised everyone. The previous managing director Tim Steffens presented the situation positively until the end and apparently covered up management errors.
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