For many years – especially in Apple’s first decades – the computer trading company Gravis was virtually synonymous with the purchase of Macs and accessories in major German cities. The company, founded in 1986 by Berlin students, went through different incarnations and has been part of the Freenet Group since 2013, which is best known for the marketing of telecommunications services.
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But now the branch network is threatened – currently it is still over 30 shops give – the end: Freenet has decided to wind down Gravis. A spokesman for the company confirmed this to Mac & i on Friday morning. Gravis recently gave itself a new coat of paint with a revised logo.
Losses since 2022
According to Freenet, Gravis has been in trouble since 2022, with increasing losses “more or less [in jedem] Quarter”. They then tried to find possible partners and/or merge businesses, but did not find a solid concept to compensate for the losses. New store concepts, the switch to card payments and new marketing measures such as the aforementioned redesign including a new website did not help either , such a statement, that Computerbase.de spread first.
When it was taken over by Freenet in 2013, Gravis was “one of Apple’s most important repair and service partners” and had been awarded many times “as a partner for quality, service, advice, customer journey”. However, Gravis also struggled with the “restrictive conditions model from Apple”. This led to the company seeing no possibility of “making the business viable in the future.” Furthermore, the influence of the corona pandemic, the ever-increasing online trading and the resulting losses in the stationary sector were given as reasons for the end.
The exact process is still unclear
It is not yet clear how exactly the end of the individual branches will take place and what will happen to the affected employees. Corresponding processes and discussions are ongoing, Freenet told Mac & i. The company did not want to say exactly when the website and stores would close.
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There had already been negative changes among the better-known Apple retailers last year. The Cyberport company had thinned out its branch network, including in Berlin, but also at other locations. When buying Apple products, it is always a good idea to visit resellers. These can be hundreds of euros cheaper than Apple itself, especially for more expensive devices. The disadvantage: At the start of sales, they often lack the quantities that the manufacturer already has in its own shop.
Update March 16, 2024, 12:37 p.m
Freenet boss Christoph Vilanek shared opposite the mirror with up to 400 employees potentially affected by the closure of Gravis, including around 100 at the headquarters. The situation varies from place to place, rental contracts last for different lengths, and some shops could find new buyers sooner, the paper writes. “The only thing that is clear is that the markets will no longer exist on December 31st,” said Vilanek. There will be a total of 38 branches.
According to his own statements, the Freenet boss repeatedly “called Apple”, but the hoped-for support did not materialize. “It’s no secret that Apple also has demand problems, the lifespan of products is getting longer and longer.” Most recently, there are said to have been negotiations with the Austrian Gravis partner McShark, which operates 18 branches. “But even a merger wouldn’t have saved the business. We have to recognize that it’s no longer worth it.”
(bsc)
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