An important milestone in the restructuring of KODi Diskontläden GmbH has been reached: a consortium of investors, including existing shareholder Richard Nölle, is acquiring a total of 150 of the company's stores as part of an asset deal. The creditors' committee has approved the transaction, securing around 1,200 jobs.
GÖRG partners Holger Rhode and Dr Raul I. Taras were appointed to the company's management board at the end of 2024 as part of the protective shield proceedings and, together with Thomas Montag, partner at management consultancy MONTAG & MONTAG, played a key role in shaping the transaction. They led the negotiations with the investor consortium and have now successfully concluded them.
The consortium will acquire significant assets of KODi Diskontläden GmbH with retroactive effect from 1 April 2025 and will continue to operate the business under the KODi brand. A structured sale of the remaining 80 stores that are not part of the transaction has already been initiated. At the same time, talks are underway with potential interested parties who would like to continue operating individual locations under their own brand.
On 28 November 2024, KODi applied to the Duisburg Local Court for protective shield proceedings in accordance with Section 270d of the German Insolvency Code (InsO). The company thus reacted early to massive declines in sales in a challenging competitive environment and sharp increases in costs in key areas such as energy, logistics and marketing. In the course of the proceedings, regular self-administration proceedings were opened on 1 March 2025. The court appointed the previous provisional administrator, lawyer Dr Marc d'Avoine (ATN Rechtsanwälte), as administrator.
From the outset, the aim of the proceedings was to put the company on a sustainable footing for the future. In a broad-based investor process, around a dozen seriously interested parties had expressed their interest. Ultimately, the restructuring managers were able to agree on a solution with the current consortium.
Despite the success of the investor solution, it was not possible to prevent the closure of 80 stores. In this context, around 480 redundancies were announced in the affected stores and around 40 redundancies at the Oberhausen headquarters. Those responsible for the restructuring are seeking socially acceptable solutions for the employees affected.
KoDi Diskontläden GmbH, based in Oberhausen, has been supplying customers with many everyday products since 1981. Its range of household and drugstore products comprises more than 2,700 items, including cleaning, cooking, decorating, DIY, textiles and food. The company focuses on well-known manufacturer brands and attractive own brands. At the time of filing for insolvency, KODi operated around 230 stores nationwide, with a focus on North Rhine-Westphalia, and had 1,800 employees, around 100 of whom were based at its headquarters in Oberhausen. KODi's annual turnover was most recently €130 million.
KODi Diskontläden GmbH
Self-administration
GÖRG Partnerschaft von Rechtsanwälten mbB
Holger Rhode (Chief Restructuring Officer, Insolvency Administration, Düsseldorf)
Dr Raul I. Taras (Chief Restructuring Officer, Partner, Restructuring, Cologne)
MONTAG & MONTAG
Dipl.-Kfm. Thomas Montag (Chief Restructuring Officer)
Advisors
GÖRG Partnerschaft von Rechtsanwälten mbB
Dr Christian Bürger (Partner, Antitrust Law, Cologne)
Dr Katharina Landes (Partner, IP, Cologne)
Dr Michael Schaumann (Partner, M&A, Cologne)
Claus Christopher Schiller (Partner, M&A, Cologne)
Dr Frank Wilke (Partner, Labor and Employment Law, Cologne)
Dr Alberto Povedano Peramato (Associated Partner, Labor and Employment, Cologne)
Dr Monique Pröpper (Associate, M&A, Cologne)
Dr Thomas Schmitz-Justen (Associate, M&A, Cologne)
Trustee
ATN Rechtsanwälte
Dr Marc d'Avoine (Trustee)
Dipl.-Kfm. Paul Michels
