Cases
Typical tasks
The following are some typical examples of our work. In the field of restructuring, the protection of legitimate expectations is a central principle of our work. The companies are therefore anonymized.
Mold and tool making (Automotive - > 100 employees) - Southern Germany
Initial situation: Essential analyses were carried out together with the entrepreneur's son between Christmas and New Year. The entrepreneur - in his early 60s - was not on site himself, as tools had to be brought in from a large car manufacturer.
Problem situation: The company had already been in an economic crisis for over 10 years when he started work. There were persistent earnings problems, which then worsened into a fundamental liquidity crisis. The results of the analysis were clear. In my view, immediate action would have provided a real chance of restructuring. However, the entrepreneur was not prepared to follow my recommendations. Despite the entrepreneur's request for support in the final round, the company's tax advisor stood up and left the room without comment. The entrepreneur planned to take out further loans. Which the commercial bank refused to do.
Result: The company filed for insolvency a week after this round. A few days later, a large regional insolvency law firm forced the entrepreneur out of his company. Private insolvency was the result. It was a very formative experience for me.
One of my first cases and exemplary for critical situations. Unfortunately, my client didn't want to recognize the seriousness of the situation despite the clear facts.
Musical instruments > 100 employees - Southern Germany
Initial situation: The client was a manufacturer of musical instruments. Internationally active. > 100 employees. Active worldwide. The company was at high risk of insolvency at the time of entry.
Problem: Continued losses had eroded the owners' private reserves and collateral. Free liquidity was largely exhausted. Problems in all relevant organizational areas dragged on for years. The management itself spent around 100 days a year abroad for sales and marketing. Important decisions were therefore not made or were delayed. The company had considerable unrealized receivables.
Result: After stabilization and the end of our involvement, an external managing director was appointed.
Metal construction < 100 employees - Berlin
Initial situation: The owner formerly had 5 business operations. Active throughout Germany. The entire group was practically insolvent when we began our work.
Problem situation: High private debt due to large property purchases. High borrowing in the past. Overpriced acquisitions of other companies. Overburdening of the entrepreneur.
Solution: The remaining business activities were concentrated in one company in complex negotiations with a large German private bank. The private property was secured for the family. The entrepreneur then successfully restarted the business. And was economically active for a few more years before the company was sold.
Control technology energy market < 100 employees - East Germany
Initial situation: The entrepreneur had bought the company (parent company in Germany, various foreign subsidiaries) two years previously. External market shocks and inadequate internal controlling put the company in acute danger of insolvency. The banks involved forced the entrepreneur into an Idw appraisal with almost two years of advice from a local consultant with considerable additional expenses and costs.
Problem: The company was underfunded and underperforming from the outset. International project business with major customers was not sufficiently managed. Both commercial banks refused to offer normal banking services for the duration of the crisis intervention (2 years). However, previous contracts were continued.
Solution: Extensive cost reductions, changes to internal processes and controlling, active crisis communication with key business partners and new external investors and shareholders stabilized the situation. Within 12 months, the company was back on a growth trajectory and clearly profitable.
Metal construction < 100 employees - East Germany
Initial situation: The family-run company was already insolvent at the time of the takeover. The insolvency application was filed. The company was a small, traditional business with long-standing customer relationships.
Problem situation: Despite comparatively low outstanding receivables (suppliers & tax office), the company had filed for insolvency itself without sufficient legal assessment. The in-house accounting department was initially overwhelmed with the compilation and evaluation of outstanding receivables. The managing director was focused exclusively on project management. Insolvency would have meant the complete destruction of the company's economic livelihood.
Solution: In an emphatic phone call, the insolvency administrator was persuaded to return his mandate. After reorganizing the internal financial management, overdue receivables were settled with payment plans. The company then continued its business activities without further disruption.
My personal smallest case.