Lirk Spielbüchler Hirtzberger manages Salzburg chocolate
insolvency
The confectionery manufacturer Salzburg Schokolade, known for its Mozartkugeln, has filed for bankruptcy. The Salzburg Regional Court now opened the proceedings and appointed Dr. Johannes Hirtzberger as insolvency administrator.
It is a main procedure within the meaning of the European Insolvency Regulation (EuInsVO). The company, based in Grödig, hopes to continue operations. 140 employees and 614 creditors are affected. According to the company, the reasons for the bankruptcy lie in the loss of a major order in 2016 and a significant drop in sales due to the corona pandemic.
According to the creditor protection association KSV1870, the liabilities of around 27 million euros are offset by assets of around 23 million euros. The prognosis for the continued existence of the company is initially negative. The renovation is checked separately. A subsidiary specializing in the packaging of confectionery in the Czech Republic is not affected by the bankruptcy.
Corona pandemic is raining sales opportunities
According to its own information, the company was hit hard by the corona pandemic from 2020. The reason is the massive decline in tourists, events and occasions such as birthday and wedding celebrations. In addition, confectionery shops in Vienna and Salzburg were sometimes closed for weeks due to a lack of tourists. The company is currently experiencing significant increases in the cost of raw materials, energy, wages, logistics and packaging materials, so that employees can receive their November wages and salaries as well as the Christmas bonus.
Manufacturer of the famous Mozart balls
Salzburg Chocolate produces under the brands Bobby chocolate bars, “Maria Theresia” -Taler and Salzburg Confisérie on the one hand sweets for the end consumer, on the other hand large consumers like bakeries and confectioners believe it under the brand “nordpol” with semi-finished products like nougat, marzipan, couverture or waffles . The most famous product, however, is the “Echte Salzburger Mozartkugel” by Mirabell, which it manufactures for the US company Mondelez. It is still unclear what the insolvency proceedings will mean for the production of the Mirabell Mozartkugeln. The decisive factor will be whether and how long the balls can still be manufactured in Grödig and how a loss of production can be compensated by the US confectionery group.
The company was founded in the city of Salzburg in 1897 under the name Rajsigl-Süßwarenfabrik and moved to Grödig in 1956. While sales in 2019 were still 28.7 million euros, according to data from the Alpenländischer Kreditorenverband (AKV) they fell by 24.4 percent to 21.7 million euros in 2020. The books showed a loss of around 1.2 million euros in 2020.
liquidator
Lirk play books Hirtzberger (Salzburg): Dr. Johannes Hirtzberger
background: The Salzburg law firm offers its clients advice on all legal matters. The two partners Hirtzberger and Dr. Stefan Lirk also have extensive experience in handling insolvency and reorganization proceedings. In February 2020, Lirk was appointed as trustee when the Kettcar manufacturer Kettler Austria went bankrupt. According to reports, a team from Binder Grösswang consisting of partner Gottfried Gassner, lawyer Georg Wabl and candidate Philipp Schanner was acting as debtor representative for the Austrian company based in Salzburg.