Metro boss Olaf Koch warns Verdi in the tariff dispute - interview continues....



 by Henryk Hielscher, Stephanie Heise, wiwo.de


 "It hits exactly the wrong people," says Olaf Koch, head of Germany's largest retail group, Metro.  In the wage dispute with Verdi, he therefore wants to set limits and sees the value of the sales candidate Kaufhof steadily increasing.




 WirtschaftsWoche: Mr. Koch, autumn has barely started when the shelves of the Metro subsidiaries Kaufhof and Real are filled with gingerbread.  What do you expect from the 2013 Christmas season?



 Koch: We are in a positive mood.  We have worked on our product ranges, set up new sales channels and invested a lot in marketing.  At our electronics retailers Media Markt and Saturn, we expect another boost for the online business towards the end of the year.  At Kaufhof, we're doing so well that the Christmas business is sure to give us a lot of fun.



 So why is Kaufhof on your sales list anyway?  Or have you grown so fond of department stores that you want to keep them?



 I've always loved Kaufhof (laughs).  We are happy that the department stores have developed so well.  However, nothing has changed strategically: the department store business cannot be internationalized to the same extent as the wholesale or electronics business.  And the returns on capital are significantly weaker.



 At the moment there is speculation about a merger with Karstadt ...



 We don't see any reason to deal with it at the moment.



 Nevertheless, the sale of Karstadt's luxury and sports stores could have an impact on Kaufhof.  Karstadt is to receive 300 million euros for modernization.  Don't you have to bring the Kaufhof stores up to date too?



 The difference to the competition is that we have continuously invested amounts of around 100 million euros annually in modernization for years.  In 2013 it will be more than 90 million euros, just like last year.  Furthermore, we have consistently aligned our product ranges and areas to our customers for two years.  Customers can see that.



 What conditions must be met when a Kaufhof is sold?



 Firstly, the assessment has to be right: Kaufhof is worth significantly more than in spring 2012, when we had talks about a sale, because the company has developed fantastically.  Second, every candidate has to prove that they have the financing.  And thirdly, we want to see a concept of how Kaufhof can be led sustainably into the future.  Should we split up, we will carefully consider where the journey is headed.  We owe this long-term perspective to our employees.  But we are under no pressure to sell.



 Kaufhof only accounts for around five percent of total group sales.  Metro's short fiscal year ended on this Monday.  How did it go overall?



 We had announced a moderate increase in sales with a slightly higher profit in advance and we continue to feel comfortable with this forecast.

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