Traditional company Menrad closes after bankruptcy - 100 employees affected!

Traditional company Menrad closes after bankruptcy - 100 employees affected!

Schwäbisch Gmünd, Deutschland - The sad news from Schwäbisch Gmünd make: The traditional family company Menrad filed for bankruptcy on March 31, 2025. As a result of liquidity problems and a declining order situation at its main location, the entire staff is now released by around 100 employees. This reports Mercury .

The decision to close came on May 28th, when the employees were informed about the progress of insolvency proceedings. Up to this point, insolvency administrator Florian Zistler had tried to develop a renovation strategy that ultimately failed. "No investor wanted to take over the company," said the mandatory analysis of the situation, which did not promise economically.

background of the crisis

Menrad, which was founded in 1896, has over 125 years of experience in glasses business and employs around 250 people worldwide. The closure of the location in Schwäbisch Gmünd, where administration as well as sales and logistics are also located, is a bitter setback for the industry. The reasons for the bankruptcy application lie in the tightened economic framework: liquidity bottlenecks and declining sales were the main triggers. To this is reported Euro-focus that the wages of employees are secured up to and including May by insolvency money.

The future of the Menrad brand is now on the brink. Discussions for the possible preservation of the traditional brand have started, but it remains questionable whether there is a suitable investor who is willing to get into the company. The difficult economic framework conditions that many companies have recently met in Germany show that bankruptcies are unfortunately not an isolated case. In 2024, for example, over 21,812 companies in Germany, which represents an increase of 22.4% compared to the previous year, such as ifm-bonn

future prospects and social responsibility

For the 100 employees dismissed, there is a social plan to cushion the consequences of the dismissals. In addition, some sales representatives have the opportunity to take over their positions in other areas of the company. This shows that despite the difficult circumstances, a certain responsibility for the workforce is perceived.

The Menrad brand, known for your collaboration with designer label such as Joop and Ted Baker, has enjoyed a good reputation in the past. With an exciting palette of glasses worldwide, it is to be hoped that the talks to maintain the company will be successful. In the face of these challenges, there is hope that the bankruptcy may even result in new opportunities, as the insolvency administrator Zistler has already indicated.