All Germany articles – Page 20
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News
Retail sales fall in Germany
Retail sales fell 1.8 per cent month on month in June as the global crisis maintained its grip on Europe’s biggest economy.The drop followed a 1.3 per cent decline in May and contrast with economists’ expectations that the country’s sales would improve slightly or, at worst, be flat in June.On ...
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Metro considers alternatives to merger
Metro is considering alternatives to formally merging its Kaufhof department store chain with Karstadt, the department store retailer owned by insolvent group Arcandor.Metro is examining the possibility of renting selected properties directly from owners once Karstadt goes into bankruptcy. A Metro spokesman said the retailer was interested in acquiring the ...
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OpinionPrimark will storm Germany
A visit last week to Primark’s first store in Germany was instructive. Located in the northern city of Bremen in a brand new shopping centre, it was reasonable to expect that the value retailer would have pulled out all the stops to make its Teutonic debut, and it didn’t disappoint.
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Metro unveils turnaround programme
Metro has unveiled a turnaround programme for its flagging Cash & Carry wholesale business. The turnaround programme is based on three core targets of growth, restructuring and innovation.Metro Cash & Carry said the programme will improve its earnings development and open up additional sales potential. The grocer’s growth strategy includes ...
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Schlecker interested in buying Woolworths Germany stores
Chemist Schlecker is understood to be interested in buying some of the stores of insolvent retailer Woolworths Germany. The health and beauty giant would convert the shops to its Schlecker XL fascia.Other retailers interested in snapping up some of the 160 stores are thought to be discount grocers Lidl and ...
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Promotion planned for Metro chief financial officer
Metro plans to promote its chief financial officer Thomas Unger to the role of deputy chief executive early next year, according to local reports.Unger will be tasked with overseeing Metro’s restructuring programme “Shape 2012”, which will result in 15,000 job losses and aims to increase profits by €1.5bn (£1.3bn).He will ...
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Staff recommend Aldi Sud increases branded products
Staff at discount grocer Aldi Sud have “strongly recommended” that the retailer should increase its range of branded products, according to German press reports.The discount grocer – split into two companies in Germany, Aldi Sud and Aldi Nord – is reported to have suffered a 5 per cent fall in ...
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NewsAldi vows to keep expanding despite missing stores target
Aldi UK chief executive Paul Foley has admitted that the hard discounter will not hit its store-a-week opening target but vowed that there is still strong growth potential for the German grocer.
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News
Arcandor receives interest in its mail order division
Insolvent retail and tourism group Arcandor has received interest in its mail order division Quelle, according to its administrator.Joerg Nerlich, who is part of the insolvency administration for Arcandor, said that measures would be taken to restructure the unit, including potential job cuts.Quelle secured a E50m (£43.1m) rescue aid loan ...
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Escada to consider state aid request to secure growth
Luxury fashion house Escada will consider requesting state aid to secure its long-term growth if it is successful in securing refinancing to avoid insolvency.The beleaguered group, a favourite of celebrities such as Demi Moore and Katie Holmes, is asking investors to forego more than half of their investments in a ...
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Celesio’s acquisition of a majority stake in Pharmexx has been approved
The European Commission’s antitrust panel has approved German pharmacy giant Celesio’s acquisition of a majority stake in Pharmexx.Celesio revealed in March its intentions to increase its shareholding in the company from 30 per cent to 65 per cent. Pharmexx provides marketing and sales solutions to pharmaceutical and biotech companies.The deal ...
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GalleryStore of the week: Esprit, Stockholm
Trying to get shoppers into your store when you’re positioned on the third floor of a glass and steel tower block is probably a matter of having a very substantial shout. In the pedestrianised Drottninggattan area of Stockholm, fashion retailer Esprit has overcome this by making a feature of the ...
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Former Arcandor chief executive denies part in the group's downfall
Former Arcandor chief executive Thomas Middelhoff has denied he played a part in the downfall of the retail and tourism group.Arcandor was forced into insolvency earlier this month after the state refused to grant it aid on the grounds that its problems pre-dated the recession.“I am convinced that we have ...
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Schwarz Group fastest riser according to Planet Retail
Discount grocers are continuing their march on the competition, with Lidl owner Schwarz Group being the fastest riser in Planet Retail’s Top 20 Grocery Retailers 2008.Schwarz jumped from ninth to fifth place last year as the global downturn continues to accelerate growth for discount chains.The research also revealed that the ...
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Desigual to open Berlin flagship
Spanish fashion retailer Desigual is to open a flagship store on one of Berlin’s main shopping streets, Tauentzienstrasse, in early July.The store will be its first in Germany and, depending on its success, more may follow. Desigual product is sold in 180 shops in Germany at present.Last year the retailer’s ...
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NewsArcandor teeters as talks to salvage business continue
The future of beleaguered German conglomerate Arcandor hangs in the balance after it began insolvency proceedings last week.
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NewsArcandor investor cuts stake in stricken German retail group
Arcandor shareholder German bank Sal Oppenheim has cut its stake in the German retail and tourism group and said it would decide whether to remain its second-largest shareholder only when the insolvent retailer revealed a restructuring plan.
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News
Media Markt plans more stores in Turkey
Media Markt, the consumer electronics group owned by German retailer Metro Group, plans to open a further seven stores in Turkey by the end of this year.The move is part of Media Markt’s strategy to become the leader in the Turkish market by 2010. The retailer has opened nine stores ...
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Rewe increases sales
Grocery group Rewe increased group-wide retail sales by 10.5 per cent to €49.8bn (£42.9bn) in 2008, it revealed this week, with EBITDA up 8.5 per cent to €1.34bn (£1.15bn).It recorded growth both in its German home market and abroad, but contributions from overseas operations were particularly strong. Sales increases were ...
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NewsArcandor files for bankruptcy protection
German retail group Arcandor has filed for bankruptcy protection after yesterday’s decision by the German government not to provide rescue funds. An administrator is expected to be appointed today.