Over the years, it has become a pan-European real estate group with more than 150 employees and offices in Vienna, Innsbruck, Munich, Düsseldorf, Luxembourg, Zurich, Bolzano, Berlin and Hamburg.
Signa Prime Selection AG Long term ownership of exceptional city-centre properties in European highstreets
(49% owned by Signa) The group of companies covers real estate assets worth more than 14 billion euros.
The Signa Group is not only active in its core markets of Austria and Germany but also in Italy, Switzerland, Luxembourg, Belgium and the Czech Republic.
The GEB deals not only with the operations of the individual core areas but also with cross-company matters including group strategy and coordination as well as fundraising.
[4] The advisory board does not have an official corporate law function, but it is considered the body that determines the strategic lines in Signa.
[6] The new headquarters of the German Stock Exchange in Eschborn near Frankfurt, the luxury department store KaDeWe in Berlin, Alsterhaus in Hamburg and Oberpollinger in Munich city centre site in Munich, and objects in Vienna's pedestrian zone and Mariahilfer Straße belong to the Signa portfolio, as do the Sevens shopping centre on Düsseldorf's Königsallee w In Austria, Kaufhaus Tyrol and the properties of the Goldenes Quartier in Vienna and one of the buildings which houses Meinl am Graben belong to the Signa portfolio.
In December 2013 it was announced that Signa had acquired the Wiener Postsparkasse, the headquarters of Bawag P.S.K., and rented it back to the bank long-term.
At the end of December 2012 a portfolio of 17 Karstadt department stores including the Kaufhaus des Westens (KaDeWe) in Berlin was acquired by Signa Prime Selection AG for a sum of over 1.1 billion euros.
In November 2013 Signa passed on half of its shares – that is to say 37.55% - in Karstadt Premium and the sports shops, to the Israeli businessman Beny Steinmetz.
Karstadt Premium operates the three luxury department stores Kaufhaus des Westens in Berlin, Alsterhaus in Hamburg and Oberpollinger in Munich.
In August 2016, Signa took over 100% of the designer fashion online outlet dress-for-less, a company founded in 1999 with a presence in thirteen countries, principally in the D-A-CH (Germany, Austria and Switzerland) region and in the Netherlands.
At the beginning of November 2016, Signa Retail acquired an 87% stake in the specialist mail-order company for bicycle and outdoor products, called Internet stores.
[10] In a central location in Munich, between the main station and Stachus, Signa Real Estate went in October 2016 in a joint venture with the partner RFR Holding GmbH and has participated in the famous department store ensemble Karstadt München Bahnhofplatz.
In June 2019 the shares in Galeria Kaufhof still held by the Hudson's Bay Company, were bought by Signa Holding.
[12] The New York-based investment company Madison acquired a 5% stake in Signa Prime Selection AG in July 2019.
In Austria, Germany and Italy Public Prosecture began to investigate René Benko for possible fraudulent bankruptcy and money laundering.
[16] In the company, signa covered its luxury properties - publicly known buildings such as Berlin KaDeWe or the "Goldene Quartier" in Vienna.
[18] At the beginning of January 2017, Signa Real Estate announced that it was taking over the renowned Viennese developer BAI Bauträger Austria Immobilien GmbH.
[20] Also at the beginning of October 2017, an increase in shareholder capital of Signa Prime Selection AG, which has real estate in good inner-city locations in Germany, Austria and northern Italy, was carried out at 1 billion euro.
In November, Signa Prime Selection AG acquired a portfolio consisting of five properties: the Upper West in Berlin, the Kaufmannshaus and the Alsterarkaden in Hamburg, the project development Upper Zeil in Frankfurt and 50% RFR participation of the Karstadt project at the Munich railway station.
At the beginning of December, Deloitte's headquarters, formerly owned by Signa Funds, became BNP Paribas Real Estate.
[21] In April, Signa Sports Group and its subsidiary internetstores acquired 100% of Probikeshop - an online bike retailer founded in 2005 in Saint-Étienne in France and Southern Europe.
Karstadt CEO Stephan Fanderl announced in May 208 that the department store group in Berlin-Tegel would open a new branch - the first new location in three decades.
In November 2019, it was announced that Signa Holding's retail division will take over the travel agencies and the online platform of Thomas Cook Germany, thus securing the jobs of the insolvent tour operator for the time being.
This business unit of Signa Holding is engaged in the identification of promising projects in the field of real estate digitalization.
The concept of the company is aimed at a close-knit warehouse network, which could become more important in times of increasing mail order business.
On 13 May 2013 it was disclosed that Strabag boss Hans Peter Haselsteiner had - via his private family trust - taken a share in Signa Prime Selection AG.
The prominent business figures who hold shares in Signa Prime include Roland Berger, Wendelin Wiedeking, Ernst Tanner, Harti Weirather and Torsten Toeller.