EQS-Adhoc: GERRY WEBER International AG announces financial realignment with preventive StaRUG Proceedings and operative restructuring of the German retail business

GERRY WEBER International AG announces financial realignment with preventive StaRUG Proceedings and operative restructuring of the German retail business

 
(Halle/Westphalia, 19 April 2023) – GERRY WEBER International AG will make a notification of the proposed restructuring in accordance with the German Business Stabilisation and Restructuring Act (Unternehmensstabilisierungs- und ‑restrukturierungsgesetz – in short: StaRUG) at the competent local court (Amtsgericht) of Essen today.

As part of the proposed restructuring, the company’s financial indebtedness shall be reduced significantly and thereby create a material prerequisite to collect new funds. The negotiations with the essential creditors of the company to implement the proposed restructuring and raise fresh funds will be held in the next few weeks in order to be able to quickly put a restructuring plan to the vote. Part of the proposed restructuring is to be a capital reduction to zero which might lead to an uncompensated exit of the current shareholders of the company and the termination of the stock listing of the shares in GERRY WEBER International AG. The new financing structure is intended to secure the company until 2026.

Parallel to the proposed restructuring at the level of GERRY WEBER International AG, GERRY WEBER Retail GmbH, a 100% subsidiary in which the German retail activities of the group are combined, will apply to the competent local court (Amtsgericht) in Bielefeld for the order of self-administration proceedings in accordance with section 270a of the German Insolvency Code (Insolvenzordnung ‒ InsO). Through the self-administration proceedings, the business operations of GERRY WEBER Retail GmbH, which will initially be continued in full, are to be thoroughly operationally restructured. Dr Christian Gerloff, who has already accompanied the company as general representative during the restructuring in 2019, has joined the management of GERRY WEBER Retail GmbH as restructuring officer in this context.

Other companies of the GERRY WEBER group are not affected by the above measures. Apart from the above, the business operations of the group will continue without restrictions.

The annual accounts of GERRY WEBER International AG and the group accounts of GERRY WEBER group will not be published on 28 April 2023 as announced, but the publication will only occur after the implementation of the restructuring concept.

The management board

Notifying person: 
Florian Frank 
Member of the management board 
Tel.: +49 5201 185-140 
ir@gerryweber.com

1611707  19-Apr-2023 CET/CEST