Karstadt

Department Store Retailkarstadt.de

Karstadt operates as the GALERIA sub-brand of GALERIA S.à r.l. & Co. KG, a German omnichannel department store retailer serving general consumers with fashion, accessories, home goods, beauty, and food via flagship physical stores across major German cities, the galeria.de e-commerce platform, mobile apps, Click & Collect, a loyalty program integrated with PAYBACK, and a third-party marketplace.

Company typePrivate
Founded1879
HeadquartersEssen, Germany
Headcount5,001–10,000
GTM typeB2C
OfferingServices

What Karstadt does

Karstadt operates today as the department store sub-brand of GALERIA S.à r.l. & Co. KG, a vertically integrated omnichannel retailer serving general German consumers with fashion, accessories, jewelry, watches, luggage, toys, home goods, beauty products, electronics, and food. The company runs department stores across major German metropolitan areas — Berlin, Düsseldorf, Frankfurt am Main, Hamburg, Köln, and München — alongside the galeria.de e-commerce platform, native iOS and Android applications, and a Click & Collect service that bridges online ordering with in-store pickup. Ancillary in-store concepts include Markthallen (food halls) and restaurants, plus the GALERIA Home private-label brand.

The underlying technology stack combines the galeria.de storefront, mobile applications, and an owned third-party marketplace (hood.de, acquired 2017) that generates marketplace commission revenue. Customer retention is driven by the GALERIA PLUS loyalty program integrated with PAYBACK, Germany's largest multi-brand loyalty network, and by gift card balances. Additional revenue streams include affiliate and partner referrals (GALERIA Reisen for travel booking, Eventim for event ticketing).

Karstadt traces its origins to 1879. In 2015, René Benko's Signa holding company acquired both Karstadt and Kaufhof; the operations were merged and rebranded under the GALERIA umbrella in 2019. Signa entered insolvency in late 2023 / early 2024 alongside rising interest rates, construction cost overruns, and over-leveraged acquisitions, and Benko was sentenced to two years in prison in October 2025 for concealing assets from creditors. The retail entity remains in operation despite the insolvency proceedings at the parent level.

Karstadt firmographics

Firmographics

Name: Karstadt
Legal name: GALERIA S.à r.l. & Co. KG
Website: https://karstadt.de
Company type: Private
Founded year: 1879
Operating status: Operating
Headcount range: 5,001–10,000 employees
Short description: Karstadt operates as the GALERIA sub-brand of GALERIA S.à r.l. & Co. KG, a German omnichannel department store retailer serving general consumers with fashion, accessories, home goods, beauty, and food via flagship physical stores across major German cities, the galeria.de e-commerce platform, mobile apps, Click & Collect, a loyalty program integrated with PAYBACK, and a third-party marketplace.
Ownership category
akta.pro rank

Where Karstadt is headquartered

Location

Headquarters

HQ city: Essen
HQ country: Germany
HQ region: Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

Karstadt business model

Business model

GTM type: B2C
Offering type: Services
Cost components: Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

Retail merchandise sales: Revenue from selling fashion, accessories, jewelry, watches, luggage, toys, home goods, beauty products, electronics, and food through physical stores and online platform.
Online marketplace fees: GALERIA operates a marketplace where third-party sellers can sell on the platform, generating commission-based revenue.
Affiliate and partner referrals: Partnership programs including travel booking through GALERIA Reisen and event ticketing through Eventim partnership generate referral revenue.

Pricing tiers

Model	Billing	Price
Unit Pricing	Pay-as-you-go	Standard retail pricing with promotional sales
Freemium	Monthly	GALERIA PLUS membership

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels4 records

Karstadt product offering

Product offering

Core offering

Karstadt operates as part of GALERIA, a German department store chain selling fashion, accessories, jewelry, watches, luggage, toys, home goods, beauty products, electronics, and food through physical stores in major German cities and the galeria.de e-commerce platform. The company offers additional services including Click & Collect, the GALERIA PLUS loyalty program with PAYBACK integration, Markthallen food halls, restaurants, gift cards, and travel partnerships.

Product overview

GALERIA is a unified department store platform combining physical retail stores and e-commerce, formed from the merger of Karstadt and Kaufhof. The company operates as GALERIA S.à r.l. & Co. KG with roots dating to 1879, offering a comprehensive range of products including fashion for women, men, and children, accessories, beauty products, watches and jewelry, home goods, luggage, toys, and sports equipment. The product portfolio includes both third-party branded merchandise and the GALERIA Home private label brand. Services include Click & Collect, the GALERIA PLUS loyalty program, market halls with gourmet foods, on-site restaurants, gift cards, and a mobile app for both iOS and Android. The company also operates outlet stores and maintains partnerships with PAYBACK for loyalty points, Eventim for event tickets, and travel services.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

GALERIA Physical Stores Traditional brick-and-mortar department stores located in major German cities including Berlin, Düsseldorf, Frankfurt, Hamburg, Cologne, and Munich, offering diverse product categories.
GALERIA Online Shop E-commerce platform offering the full range of GALERIA department store products for online purchase, including fashion, accessories, beauty, home goods, and more.
Click & Collect

Companies that use Karstadt

Customer profile

Named customers1 record

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Karstadt technology and API

Technology

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API: No
API docs
API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration3 records

Feature3 records

Karstadt partnerships and signals

Strategic signal

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

PAYBACKcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerPAYBACK is a loyalty points program integrated with GALERIA, allowing customers to earn points on purchases. The PAYBACK logo appears prominently on the website alongside GALERIA Plus branding, indicating a core customer retention and engagement partnership.
EventimminorGTM or Marketing PartnerEventim partnership provides customers access to event ticketing services through the GALERIA platform. Customers can purchase event tickets via Eventim through the GALERIA website, with Eventim featured as a brand partner.
GALERIA ReisenminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorGALERIA Reisen provides travel booking services including cruises and travel packages. The partnership allows GALERIA to offer travel products as part of its product assortment, with links to external travel booking sites.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Karstadt competitors and assessment

Company assessment

Emerging players

Zalando: Germany-headquartered pure-play fashion e-commerce platform with broad third-party marketplace operations; a major competitive threat in fashion that increasingly overlaps with GALERIA's apparel and accessories category. Adjacent but meaningful overlap worth tracking as an emerging category leader.

Broad incumbents

Macy's: Major US department-store chain pursuing an omnichannel, marketplace, and small-format strategy to defend against e-commerce. Comparable as a broader incumbent department-store operator navigating category decline and digital transformation.
Otto (Otto Group): Germany's largest general-merchandise online retailer and platform operator with broad non-food assortment plus omnichannel partnerships. Comparable as a German incumbent operating a multi-category general merchandise model that overlaps directly with GALERIA's online assortment.
Nordstrom: US-based multi-category department store retailer combining physical stores with strong digital business and a marketplace platform. A broader incumbent showing how a department-store operator transitions toward an omnichannel and marketplace model relevant to GALERIA's strategy.

Direct peers

Selfridges: British luxury department store owned by Central Group and Signa associate, with strong heritage, physical flagships, and omnichannel retail spanning fashion, beauty, jewelry, and home. Comparable as a heritage-driven European department store operator with comparable brand-building DNA.
Engelhorn: Family-owned German department store and sporting goods retailer (Engelhorn Sports) with multi-category physical stores, an in-store food market, and online presence. Comparable mid-size German department-store operator with similar category breadth and food hall differentiation.
KaDeWe Group: Berlin-based luxury department store operator (also runs Oberpollinger and Alsterhaus) with department store food halls and premium assortment spanning fashion, beauty, jewelry, and gourmet. Closest like-for-like peer to GALERIA's flagship store model and Markthallen concept.
El Corte Inglés: Spain's largest department store group with very broad assortment including fashion, home, electronics, jewelry, and a strong in-store food hall/gourmet offering. Comparable in operating a multi-category department-store-plus-food concept at significant European scale.
Galeries Lafayette: Iconic French department store group with flagship stores, gourmet food halls (Le Gourmet), and a multi-category luxury assortment spanning fashion, beauty, jewelry, and home. Closest European analogue to GALERIA's department-store-plus-food-hall model.
Breuninger: German premium multi-category department store chain operating physical stores plus an e-commerce platform with similar broad assortment (fashion, beauty, home). Directly comparable in product mix, omnichannel strategy, and customer base within the German market.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Karstadt financial estimates

Financial estimate

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Karstadt leadership team

Management profile

Number of profiles

Karstadt subsidiaries and ownership

Company hierarchy

Subsidiaries2 records

Karstadt funding detail

Funding detail

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Karstadt M&A and investment

M&A and investment

M&A1 record

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Karstadt

What does Karstadt do?

Is Karstadt a public or private company?

Karstadt is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently operating.

When was Karstadt founded?

Karstadt was founded in 1879. It employs 5,001 to 10,000 people.

Where is Karstadt based?

Karstadt is headquartered in Essen, Germany, in the Europe region.

How does Karstadt make money?

Three revenue lines are on record. Retail merchandise sales are the primary driver. The others are online marketplace fees and affiliate and partner referrals.

Who are Karstadt's main competitors?

Zalando is listed as an emerging player. Broad incumbents are Macy's, Otto (Otto Group) and Nordstrom. Direct peers are Selfridges, Engelhorn, KaDeWe Group, El Corte Inglés, Galeries Lafayette and Breuninger.

Does Karstadt have an API?

No public API is recorded for Karstadt.