End after 41 years: Spielemax is closing all branches at the end of the year. Photo: Thomas Spikermann
From BZ/dpa
After the insolvency of the insolvent toy retailer Spiele Max in Stahnsdorf, Brandenburg, south of Berlin, the responsible specialist lawyer is checking whether the company can be restructured.
It is still unclear whether branches will close permanently, said the court-appointed administrator Torsten Martini upon request. According to him, negotiations are underway with landlords of the toy stores.
There is currently a clearance sale in the branches. “We are closing,” it says in toy store windows.
Insolvency proceedings were opened at the Berlin-Charlottenburg district court in September of this year due to the insolvency and over-indebtedness of SPM Filialbetriebs GmbH. This is a self-administered insolvency procedure – this is a variant of the insolvency procedure in which there is no insolvency administrator, but rather a so-called administrator who accompanies and monitors the procedure. This task lies with the Berlin specialist lawyer for insolvency and restructuring law Martini. The company’s management remains in office.
“Insolvency does not mean cessation of operations”
“Insolvency does not mean cessation of operations,” emphasized Martini. The opposite is the case. There can be no question of a nationwide closure of the Spiele Max branches.
Spiele Max had already run into a crisis a few years ago. In 2020, the company sought rescue in protective shield proceedings. It protects companies from access by creditors without the company having to file for bankruptcy.