Status: 03/13/2023 2:38 p.m
Galeria owner Benko has grandiose plans for Berlin, including remodeling a Karstadt branch in Neukölln in the style of the 1920s. Meanwhile, employees fear for their future because 52 branches are being closed.
By Jacqueline Piwon, rbb
The elevator goes to the 31st floor. A loft floor with elegant beige lounge furniture and a view over the capital. Everything looks very small from up here, but big things are planned here. White models of skyscrapers stand on waist-high pillars. There are planned construction projects for the capital, some of which have already been completed, says Timo Herzberg, head of Signa’s real estate division.
The company plans monumental real estate projects in prominent locations in Berlin. “This is the future high-rise building on Berlin’s Alexanderplatz and the “Stream”, which has already been completed, on Mercedes-Benz-Platz in Friedrichshain,” says Herzberg.
52 branches are to close
The company Signa belongs to the controversial Austrian real estate entrepreneur René Benko. The company is an important player in the city’s retail trade and also influences the development of neighborhoods with its construction projects. In addition to the premium department store KaDeWe, he also owns the insolvent department store chain Galeria Karstadt Kaufhof.
While Benko presented himself as a “department store rescuer” for a long time, critics fear that he is primarily concerned with the profitable development of his real estate. In the early afternoon, the general works council announced that 52 branches of the 129 department stores with around 17,400 employees were to be closed. More than 5,000 people are threatened with dismissal, it said. Galeria itself has not yet commented; the group’s supervisory board meets in the afternoon.
Is diversity lost?
It’s bustling at Hermannplatz in Berlin-Neukölln. Here you will find the diversity of Berlin. A bit hip, a bit dirty and always loud. Signa is planning one of its major projects here: the conversion of the local Karstadt branch in the style of the 1920s. A chic district building is planned – with less retail space, but with offices, restaurants and apartments.
But the plans are controversial. The fear is that the project could make the diverse area around Hermannplatz unaffordable: “It’s about changing tenants and buyers around Hermannplatz. At some point we’ll get Prenzlauer Berg conditions here, and that scares me.” , says Joachim from the Hermannplatz initiative, which is against the new building plans.
Lobbying for prestige projects
In order to get politics and society to love this vision of the chic 1920s building, Signa spends a lot of money – on PR strategies and lobbying. “I’ve never experienced anything like this in an investor project,” says Green MP Susanna Kahlefeld. For weeks she constantly met employees of the PR agency in the House of Representatives.
The LobbyControl association has its headquarters opposite Hermannplatz and has followed Signa’s efforts with interest over the past few years. “You try to play and influence at all levels here,” says Timo Lange from LobbyControl. This includes addressing political decision-makers directly, but also having a direct impact on urban society.
Deal between Signa and department store chain
Signa has already proven how good its contacts in politics are. Maybe too good? In 2020 there will be a deal between Signa and Galeria Karstadt Kaufhof. Some speak of “rescue”, others of “blackmail”. The company promises that jobs and locations will be retained. The Berlin Senate supports the development of large real estate projects such as Alexanderplatz or Hermannplatz.
A lot of hope was placed in the company and its players. And some of them have been disappointed. Many employees at Karstadt and Galeria Kaufhof are unsettled. “You don’t know what’s going to happen next. Do you still have a job in four months, or don’t you have one anymore?” says Corinna Grauhering, employee of the branch at the Berlin Ring-Center. The jobs here were actually considered safe until 2023. At least that is what the agreement between Signa and the Berlin Senate envisaged. But meanwhile a second insolvency procedure for the ailing department stores is running.
The staff are angry. “For years, Karstadt employees have been doing without holiday pay, Christmas bonuses and the regular collective agreement,” says works council member Susanne Urbansky. You would have thought it would help “if we have a few losses”, you might make progress that way. “Now we’re in bankruptcy again within two years.” Signa’s prestige buildings, such as the skyscraper on Alexanderplatz, have now been approved.