Insolvency crisis in Baden-Württemberg: family business at the limit!

In Germany, family businesses are of central importance to the economy. Loud ARD media library These companies employ around 8 million people and generate annual sales of around 1,700 billion euros. However, family businesses seem to be suffering from the stagnating economy, particularly among medium-sized businesses, which are strongly represented in Baden-Württemberg. There was a worrying increase in bankruptcies in 2024. More companies have filed for bankruptcy than in almost 10 years. According to the Federal Statistical Office, the number of insolvencies rose by 16.8 percent in 2024, which led to 13.8 percent more registered insolvency proceedings in December 2024 compared to the previous year.

Marie-Christine Ostermann, President of the Association of Family Businesses and Managing Director of Rullko Großeinkauf GmbH & Co. KG based in Hamm, was critical of economic policy issues, especially bureaucracy, which, in her opinion, is slowing down economic development. Your company, which supplies food to commercial kitchens and restaurants, generated sales of 91 million euros in 2023. The economic situation will also be a central issue in the election campaign for the upcoming federal election.

Bankruptcies in Baden-Württemberg have risen sharply

A new look at the situation of corporate insolvencies in Baden-Württemberg shows that a total of 1,245 corporate insolvencies were filed from January to June 2024. This represents an increase of 340 insolvency proceedings or 37.6 percent compared to the same period last year. A total of 11,330 employees were affected by these bankruptcies, although this should be understood as a lower limit as not all affected jobs were recorded. The expected claims of creditors against insolvent companies amount to over 1.8 billion euros, which corresponds to an average of around 1.47 million euros per insolvency procedure.

The frequency of insolvency is particularly noticeable in the Mannheim city district, with 8.7 insolvency applications per 1,000 resident companies. There, 27.1 percent of insolvencies occurred in the real estate and housing sector. In contrast, the Waldshut district recorded the lowest insolvency frequency with 0.8 insolvency applications per 1,000 companies. A total of 6,645 corporate and private insolvency proceedings were filed in Baden-Württemberg in the first half of 2024, which means an increase of 1,077 proceedings or 19.3 percent compared to the previous year Statistics BW reported.