2024-09-05 01:49:41
Plans for an IPO, branch closures and now a possible sale: all signs point to change at the office supplies retailer buero.de. The background is unclear.
The office supplies retailer buero.de is apparently for sale. This is clear from internal company documents that t-online has seen. The resolution states that the supervisory board, with reference to the strategic decisions of the management board, prefers the sale of the buero.de group in whole or in part.
Buero.de managing director Markus Schön confirmed the sales plans when asked. “It’s true; in addition to considering an IPO, we have also started thinking about selling our group.” The company’s approximately 1,000 employees would also be affected by the possible sale.
Buero.de became known to a wider public last year when the company became involved in the discussion about the future of the department store chain Galeria Kartstadt Kaufhof. At the time, managing director Schön reported on the failed negotiations in an interview with t-online. You can read the interview here.
The fact that the company itself could now be up for sale comes as a surprise. Recently, buero.de had introduced new products and worked on transforming itself into a digital marketplace. Previously, there had also been speculation about a stock market listing.
The reasons behind the planned step are still unclear. It is not known to what extent economic reasons play a role.
At least last year, Schön had emphasized how good the company’s finances were. “We are a family business and are entirely equity-financed. We don’t need an investor or a bank for our operations and therefore don’t have to disclose our books,” he said at the time. “But I can tell you: I go to all of our locations full of pride and know that everything there belongs to us. And we’re talking about millions.”
Even now, Schön remains confident. “We are selling buero.de from a position of strength; bargains are only available in our stores,” says Schön.
At the same time, buero.de confirmed just last week that the company wanted to close more than half of its stationary branches. Of the current 25 branches, only twelve will remain. This mainly affects stores in the Ruhr area, which were bought from the insolvent “Pro Büro” chain just about a year ago.
Various developments on the market may also have had an influence. For example, the owner families of the Breuninger fashion chain recently announced that they wanted to sell their shares. This announcement caused uncertainty on the market. You can read more about it here.
It is not yet known whether there are already interested buyers. However, Schön had already indicated some time ago that there were negotiations with possible investors from the Arab world and that an unnamed Hamburg company had also expressed interest. At the time, however, it was not about a complete sale of the company, but rather a partial sale.