Galeria Kaufhof at Rotkreuzplatz Faces Uncertain Future Amid Redevelopment Plans
Munich, March 11 – The Galeria Kaufhof department store at Rotkreuzplatz in the Neuhausen-Nymphenburg district is facing a precarious future. The retail giant has announced that it will renegotiate lease agreements for eight of its locations across Germany, with the possibility of closures if new terms cannot be reached. Simultaneously, the property owners are pursuing ambitious redevelopment plans that would see significant changes to the current building.
Lease Renegotiations and Potential Closures
On Tuesday, Galeria issued a press release outlining its strategy to address a challenging market environment in the retail sector. The company aims to achieve a “balanced risk distribution” by renegotiating leases for stores where sales and rental costs are disproportionately high, and where existing lease agreements are nearing expiration. The Rotkreuzplatz branch is among the eight locations identified for these critical discussions.
“In the event that an agreement with the landlords is not reached, the possibility of closures exists,” stated the Galeria press release. The company emphasized its commitment to providing “transparency and planning certainty for employees” by initiating early negotiations for severance packages and social plans for affected branches.
This is not the first time Galeria has faced such challenges. In previous insolvency waves, the company has often successfully negotiated rent reductions with landlords, temporarily securing the future of its branches.
Major Redevelopment Planned for the Site
In parallel to Galeria’s lease negotiations, the owners of the property at Donnersbergerstraße 3/Pötschnerstraße 5 have unveiled extensive construction plans. Details emerged from an invitation to the next meeting of the City Design Commission, sent out on Monday.
According to the plans, the existing department store building’s basement and ground floor will be largely preserved and upgraded. However, the upper floors are slated for demolition, to be replaced by new constructions featuring different uses and increased height. The current loading yard of Galeria Kaufhof is also planned to be built over with a residential building. A small high-rise building, designed by Munich-based OSA Ochs Schmidhuber Architekten, is proposed for the Rotkreuzplatz side, which would house offices and a hotel.
The Local Building Commission (LBK) is currently reviewing the project for its approval feasibility. It will seek an assessment from the City Design Commission, an advisory body for significant construction projects, on how the proposed high-rise would integrate into the surrounding urban landscape.
New Ownership and Increased Profitability Goals
The property has been owned by OFB Projektentwicklung, a real estate subsidiary of Landesbank Hessen-Thüringen (Helaba), since 2024. OFB acquired the site for just under 80 million euros from the insolvency estate of René Benko’s defunct Signa Group. OFB’s current plans aim to increase the property’s yield through more intensive development than currently exists.
The City Design Commission will also advise on the extent of additional building mass that can be permitted. Three planning variants are under consideration, differing primarily in the height of the high-rise, ranging from 30.5 to 36.7 meters. The timeline for the project’s realization remains uncertain, and Helaba did not respond to inquiries on Tuesday.
Impact on Employees and Local Economy
The potential closure of the Galeria Kaufhof branch would have significant implications for its employees and the local economy. While the construction project is still in its early stages, meaning a demolition is not imminent, the threat of closure underscores the ongoing challenges faced by traditional department stores.
The city of Munich acknowledges the importance of maintaining a vibrant retail landscape while also adapting to evolving urban development needs. The outcome of both the lease negotiations and the building permit process will ultimately determine the future of this prominent site at Rotkreuzplatz.
