Thalia Acquires Key Assets of Bankrupt Weltbild
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After the bankruptcy of the Weltbild Group, Germany's Federal Cartel Office has approved Thalia's acquisition of significant parts of the group. Thalia, Germany's largest bookstore chain, will take over customer relationships from Weltbild's online shop, the Tolino e-readers, and the Weltbild brands and domains. The physical stores, already closed due to the insolvency, are not included in the deal.
Andreas Mundt, President of the Federal Cartel Office, noted that despite Thalia's strong market position in both physical and e-book sales, the acquisition was approved in the first phase of review. This approval was influenced by the presence of larger competitors like Amazon and the availability of alternatives such as independent bookstores and other chains like Hugendubel.
The Weltbild Group, which first declared bankruptcy in 2014, filed for insolvency again in June. Following the parent company's collapse, subsidiaries like Bücher.de, Jokers, and Tausendkind also filed for bankruptcy. With the approval, Thalia aims to strengthen its market presence while customers retain access to a variety of book retailers and platforms.
