It is the last act in a long drama about the large supermarkets Real, which were most recently called Mein Real. The chain filed for bankruptcy this Friday and is insolvent. Essentially, it’s about winding up Real’s remaining 62 markets. According to media reports, only 30 to 40 houses could ultimately be continued. Some of the remaining 5,000 jobs are now threatened.
Real GmbH, based in Mönchengladbach, filed an application for self-administration insolvency with the local court. Like other companies, most recently Galeria Karstadt Kaufhof, the toy retailer Haba and the shoe seller Goetz, Real is to be rehabilitated using this process. The owner limits his financial risk. The prerequisite is that the district court approves the restructuring plan submitted, which is usually a formality. The current management remains on board in the event of bankruptcy. The procedure has the advantage for the owners that wages are paid for three months by the Federal Employment Agency. In addition, the rents will be suspended and Real can discharge all of its rental obligations.
In the best case scenario for employees, the remaining stores will be distributed to other supermarket operators. According to reports, Rewe in particular has a good chance of doing so. Rewe initially stayed in the background when Real was broken up. In 2020, the Düsseldorf Metro Group sold almost 280 Real stores. Since then it’s been back and forth. First, the financial investor SCP bought the markets, a private equity firm based in London that was financed with Russian money until Russia’s war of aggression in Ukraine. Most recently, SCP was again the owner of the chain, which has now been reduced to 62. In the meantime, SCP Real had initially handed over to the Frankfurt entrepreneur Sven Tischendorf or his family office in June 2022. In May 2023, SCP bought the markets back again, officially due to a “critical economic condition”.
The concentration in the German food market will continue
It was only when Real, under the leadership of Tischendorf, slipped into financial difficulties that Rewe came into play. Rewe should now be a strategic partner and supply the markets with food. According to information from Food newspaper Rewe is said to have secured first access rights to many of the 62 markets.
Kaufland from the Schwarz Group and Edeka are also said to be interested in taking over and maintaining other Real stores. The concentration process in the German food market is likely to receive another boost with the insolvency of Mein Real. According to calculations by the Federal Cartel Office, more than 85 percent of the food market in Germany is dominated by the four companies Schwarz Group (Lidl, Kaufland), Aldi Nord and Süd, Edeka (Netto) and Rewe (Penny).
SCP had gradually sold more than 160 houses and closed more than 30 markets since February 2021. Real’s online marketplace went to Kaufland, the meat company to Rewe. In addition, SCP split off the trading business from the real estate business. The investors were said to be essentially interested in the properties. SCP was able to resell many markets at a profit. Thanks to rental agreements concluded, the value of individual houses had increased enormously. SCP bought the Real markets, including the real estate, from Metro for around 100 million euros. In 2021, a portfolio of 34 houses was valued at one billion euros. The purchase of Real is said to have been worth it for SCP.