Branches will remain open for the time being
The Austrian subsidiary of the Polish discounter Pepco has filed for bankruptcy. The proceedings have now been opened. Pepco Austria GmbH operates 73 branches in Austria and employs over 600 people.
The reason for the move is the above-average inflation in the last few months as well as the high operating costs and cautious consumer behavior. Business activities in Austria are to be discontinued. “However, it can be assumed that the branches will initially remain open in order to enable a sale of the merchandise structured by the insolvency administrator. Only then will the debtor company probably have to be closed by the insolvency court,” expects Jürgen Gebauer from the Kreditschutzverband (KSV) 1870. Around 300 creditors are affected by the insolvency.
Pepco's withdrawal from Austria will free up resources to focus on those markets where it sees the best growth opportunities, the company said. The group continues to strive to become Europe's leading discounter in its core markets.
Pepco, headquartered in Poznań, was founded in 2015. According to its own information, the group operates a total of 4.800 stores with 47.000 employees in 21 countries.
