Commerce

According to the 2013 Commerce Report of the Association of German Chambers of Commerce and Industry (DIHK), which surveyed a representative number of both wholesalers and retailers in January 2013, the crisis atmosphere that arose in German commerce in 2009 has now calmed down again. The industry has stabilized and is taking a generally optimistic view of the future. The assessment of the situation has especially improved among wholesalers and middlemen, but the situation for automotive sales is difficult. Lack of domestic demand is seen as the main risk to companies, especially if it slackens further because of rising costs of energy and commodities, which gnaw away at the consumer budget.

Unfortunately, the positive trend found by the DIHK only partially matches our own impressions from day-to-day experience. Brick-and-mortar sellers, especially wholesalers, face particularly great challenges in setting their companies on a sound basis for the future. Rising costs, especially from longer business hours, and continuing tough competition with an increasing concentration of market participants, are countered by only slight growth in consumer demand. Internet sellers are enjoying very high growth rates in some fields, but in many cases are still looking for a sustainable business model. The issues are as diverse as the forms of commerce and the sizes of the companies involved – so it goes without saying that there’s no one-size-fits-all solution.

With our extensive practical experience in advising commercial firms, we view ourselves as a partner who speaks your language and knows the kinds of tasks you face. We can work with you to develop solutions for your business-management, tax and legal questions, all the while keeping an eye on the big picture – your company’s growth.

Our services at a glance

Developing franchise concepts, and implementing their legal, tax and business administration aspects
Reviewing terms of purchasing cooperatives; setting up a “clean team” where applicable
Business management consulting, e.g., on optimizing purchase prices
Legal and tax structuring of split-ups into interlocking owner and operator businesses (including split-ups where the owner and operator entities are both partnerships) so as to separate business properties
Cooperative arrangements in purchasing, administration and sales/distribution, including joint ventures
M&A transactions, with special attention to features specific to commerce (asset deals, valuation of inventories, retail permits, etc.)
Business valuations for transactions and in business successions, on a corporate law basis or under standardized valuation methods
Antitrust reviews taking account of sector-specific market definition criteria