Galeria Names 33 At-Risk Stores: Negotiations with Landlords Underway

Galeria CFO Norman Krotten explained the strategy: "Bei den weiteren 24 Standorten starten wir jetzt proaktiv Gespräche, um bestehende Verträge an die lokalen Gegebenheiten und veränderten Marktbedingungen der jeweiligen Stadt anzupassen". Negotiations with the landlords of the stores are "einer von sechs strategischen Hebeln" of a strategic realignment of the company resolved in June, Galeria stated.

The Strategy of Six Levers

The goal is to develop a commercially viable perspective for the 33 locations as quickly as possible. Should the negotiations fail, "konzeptionelle Anpassungen die Konsequenz sein". This means: the stores could no longer be operated "nicht mehr als klassisches Warenhaus". Under certain circumstances, the stores could also close entirely.

At individual locations, however, the conditions are "sehr herausfordernd", the company warned. Talks with landlords and local partners are also planned for the remaining 50 locations, Galeria added. Since all stores have optimization potential in this regard, discussions with landlords are also to be held at the remaining 50 locations.

Galeria Managing Director Tilo Hellenbock emphasized: "Viele Häuser haben noch nicht ausgeschöpft, was in ihrem lokalen Markt möglich ist". "Wir werden jeden Standort einzeln und ergebnisoffen betrachten", Hellenbock continued. As early as June, it had become known that around 30 of the remaining 83 stores were considered at risk.

Affected Locations in the Federal States

The list of locations now released includes stores in almost all federal states. In Baden-Württemberg, Freiburg (Europaplatz), Heilbronn, Mannheim, Offenburg, and Singen are affected. In Bavaria, Aschaffenburg, Bayreuth, Memmingen, Munich (Rotkreuzplatz), and Würzburg are on the list. Brandenburg with Potsdam, Hamburg with Eimsbüttel, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern with Wismar, and Lower Saxony with Braunschweig and Oldenburg are also represented.

In North Rhine-Westphalia, seven of the remaining 17 open stores are under review: Euskirchen, Kleve, Cologne (Breite Straße, Hohe Straße, and Nippes), Mülheim (Rhein-Ruhr Zentrum), and Münster (Salzstraße). A significant share of the at-risk locations is thus concentrated in Germany's most populous federal state. Rhineland-Palatinate is also heavily affected with Bad Kreuznach, Koblenz, Mainz, and Speyer.

Two affected locations are also in Hesse: the stores in Bad Homburg and Limburg. In Saxony-Anhalt, Magdeburg is on the list. Berlin is particularly frequently represented with Alexanderplatz, Hermannplatz, Kurfürstendamm, and Spandau.

Relief in Berlin-Tegel

On Wednesday morning, it was announced that the Galeria store on Gorkistraße in Tegel will remain open. The Berlin neighborhood had repeatedly suffered from vacancies in the past: in 2023, C&A moved out, then the long-established shoe store Leiser also closed. The pedestrian zone in northern Berlin had been reopened a year earlier following a 250-million-euro renovation.

"Karstadt war in Tegel immer ein starker Anker", said Reinickendorf district representative Felix Schönebeck (CDU). "Dass die Filiale in der Gorkistraße erhalten bleibt, ist daher eine sehr gute Nachricht für Tegel", Schönebeck continued. He had "nach der Schließung vom Nachfolger 'Hertie' sehr lange dafür gekämpft, dass Galeria zurück nach Tegel kommt".

Outlook for the Coming Months

Galeria is one of Germany's best-known department store chains, whose history was tied for decades to the names Kaufhof and Karstadt. After the takeover by the new investor consortium, these brand names were dropped and the headquarters relocated to Düsseldorf. The renewed site review comes at a time when brick-and-mortar retail is already under massive pressure in many city centers.

The immediate consequences for employees are not yet foreseeable. Galeria stated that the goal is to develop a commercially viable perspective for the 33 locations as quickly as possible. At the same time, the company pointed out that at individual locations the conditions are "sehr herausfordernd". The coming weeks and months will show which of the stores can be retained through negotiated solutions and which may disappear from the market entirely.