Marco meissner the past few months have been a to and fro between hope and fear for the insolvent kronach-based TV equipment manufacturer loewe and its employees – until on 19 january, the company was able to find a new start. July it was announced that notices would be sent to all 460 employees. The search for an investor and a possible future – at least for parts of the traditional company – nevertheless continues. And it will probably drag on for some time to come.
"The goal is to put a lid on it by the end of the year at the latest", in response to a question from the FT, the wallner-weib office, for which rudiger weib is acting as insolvency administrator, announces the following. His office also notes that there are "numerous interested parties" and that "various meetings are currently taking place and "various meetings are currently taking place.
Hope is fading
The employees seem to have long held out hope that "their" company will be saved the chances of finding a new job and returning to the same job are, however, dwindling. This is shown by language, but also a look at the job market. More and more loewe employees hear about job offers elsewhere.
This is understood by wallner-weib ubrigens. And ultimately, the insolvency administration cannot influence this individual decision. However, if an interesting investor is found later, word will get around, they say. Then, in the opinion of the office, workers will certainly be found for a possible restart, even if part of the staff is already taking new paths.
The loewe employees apparently don’t have to bury their heads in the sand before going to the labor office. According to the bamberg-coburg employment agency, these workers are in demand.
"Employers are really actively asking for loewe employees", the agency says in response to an inquiry from the FT. Mainly interested parties came from the metal, mechanical and electrical engineering sectors. But companies from the packaging industry had also come forward.
Back to the company: not only the deadline set by the office itself for finding investors indicates that no quick solution is in sight here. "We are still in the preliminary phase, says wallner-weib. All interested parties could now "get a taste" and get an idea of loewe. Meanwhile, a gradual process is getting underway. "It then becomes more and more binding. This means that there is more and more "sifting out", the buro wallner-weib states for the further search for a suitable investor. This process naturally takes time. Meanwhile, there is still no complete standstill on the loewe site. A team of about 40 employees has not yet been released and is active on site. From "final settlement negotiations there is talk of "selling off" and "productions", that are still being done.
What will happen to loewe after this will probably become clear in the medium term at the earliest. In wallner-weib’s opinion, it would therefore be pure speculation to put names of possible investors in the room right now. The conclusion is that even if the idea of a possible preservation of the kronach site had not yet been shelved, it was like looking into a crystal ball.
So the bottom line is: potential investors are in the middle of the process. Live in the process of redesigning loewe, but so far no one is.