Takeover after bankruptcy
Nougat giant Viba swallows Hussel, Arko and Eilles
April 19, 2024, 9:43 p.m
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In February, the confectionery retailers Hussel, Arko and Eilles filed for bankruptcy. The traditional brands now have a new home at the Thuringian confectionery manufacturer Viba. Around 160 of the 200 branches are to be retained.
The confectionery manufacturer Viba Sweets from Thuringia is taking over the confectionery retail chains Hussel, Arko and Eilles. Including the franchisees, around 160 of the current 200 locations of the three brands will be retained, the company said. 600 jobs would be taken over. The northern German Arko GmbH as a coffee retailer, Hussel GmbH as a confectionery and confectionery specialist and Eilles GmbH & CO. KG as tea sellers belong to Deutsche Confiserie Holding and filed for bankruptcy at the beginning of February. According to a report in “Wirtschaftswoche” at the time, around 1,200 employees recently worked for the three companies based in Wahlstedt, Schleswig-Holstein.
Arko, Hussel and Eilles had already filed for bankruptcy on their own in 2021 as a result of the Corona crisis and were ultimately able to save themselves. Arko with Eilles took over Hussel in September 2018. The merger should create “attractive economies of scale” and “foundation for shared growth.” Arko was founded in 1948 in Wahlstedt in Schleswig-Holstein, Hussel in 1949 in Hagen. Eilles took over Arko from JJ Darboven in 2016.
Turbulent times because of cocoa prices
“If we succeed in making shopping in our branches an experience for customers, we are confident that our specialist stores will assert themselves on the market and remain a valuable component of attractive city centers,” explained the shareholders of Viba Sweets GmbH, Karl Heinz Einhäuser and Holger Storch, in a statement.
The takeover is scheduled to take place on May 1st of this year. According to its own statements, Viba Sweets will grow from currently around 450 employees to more than 1,000. The integration is taking place in economically turbulent times, it said, especially with regard to cost increases for important raw materials such as cocoa. “We are aware that the journey together will be challenging,” said the company based in Floh-Seligenthal, Thuringia. It is best known for its nougat products under the Viba and Heilemann brands.