Overview
- The Amtsgericht Essen formally opened insolvency proceedings on 27 August and named lawyer Stefan Denkhaus as court trustee for Hellweg Profi‑Bau‑ & Garten‑Märkte and BayWa Bau‑ & Gartenmärkte.
- Company advisers say roughly 35 of more than 110 branches have prospective buyers while most other sites currently lack a solution and face shutdown if no buyer emerges.
- OBI has publicly confirmed five firm takeovers with a target of up to twelve stores, but all acquisitions remain subject to cartel clearance and landlord approvals.
- Employees at branches without a buyer were given precautionary dismissals, the firms will pay wages through 30 November 2026, and non‑transferred stores are scheduled to close by the end of November.
- The groups will abandon the Hellweg and BayWa brand names, close central offices in Dortmund and Garching with about 340 jobs lost, and executives blame weak demand, supply‑chain strains and rising costs for the collapse.