A Swiss subsidiary of the deco-kette Depot has filed for insolvency. As a result, all 34 stores will be closed immediately and around 300 employees will lose their jobs. According to Hansjörg Högger, the deputy insolvency administrator, the employees were informed of the sudden closure on Thursday and were asked to hand over their keys to the insolvency administrator by the evening.
Despite claims that the Swiss operations were stable, the news has left employees stunned. “It was always said that the Swiss stores were stable, despite the problems of the parent company” said a affected employee. “But now, we’re left without a job, from one day to the next.”
The German parent company, Gries Deco Holding, has been in insolvency proceedings since mid-2024 and despite intense efforts, a sustainable financial solution could not be found. Customers with outstanding orders or vouchers are advised to contact the customer service directly.
The insolvency administrator expects the proceedings to take at least a year and will first conduct an investigation of the company’s management and then inventory the stores. Whether the assets will be sold remains unclear.
Depot struggled with increasing pressure, mainly from online competitors like the Chinese platform Temu. Even Migros, which once supported Depot, sold the company back to the Gries family in 2019. Despite intense negotiations with banks, the restructuring efforts were ultimately unsuccessful.
The closure of Depot’s Swiss stores is a stark reminder of the challenges faced by traditional retailers in the digital age. The shift in consumer behavior, driven by the rise of online shopping, has left many brick-and-mortar stores struggling to stay afloat. As the lights in the former store windows go out and the cash registers remain silent, the once-thriving streets of European cities are slowly transforming into a landscape of empty storefronts and clearance sales.
The fate of Depot’s employees serves as a poignant reminder of the human cost of this transformation. As the city streets change, so do the lives of the people who once frequented these stores, seeking out a sense of community and human connection in the midst of a rapidly changing world.