Photobook Publisher Steidl in Dire Straits After Threat of Bankruptcy
Though it has resolved recent insolvency proceedings, the German publisher remains shaken by a 50% drop in international sales.
The German publishing giant Steidl Verlag, known for photobooks by leading artists including Nan Goldin, Gordon Parks, Walker Evans, and Joseph Beuys, is facing an uncertain future after coming close to bankruptcy.
The publisher has recently resolved insolvency proceedings that were opened against it after the company allegedly withheld employee salaries and failed to make social security contributions.
Founded by Gerhard Steidl in 1968, the publisher had faced preliminary insolvency proceedings after a German agency that regulates part-time employment filed a claim against the company earlier this month.
According to Der Spiegel, the company had allegedly owed outstanding wages to numerous employees, some of whom claim they had not been paid for up to six months. As of its insolvency filing on July 10, the company reportedly had not paid a five-figure sum in wages, and several lawsuits filed by staff were still pending.
Der Spiegel also reported that the company withheld social security contributions, catalyzing the collecting agency Minijob-Zentrale to open insolvency proceedings against it.
Gerhard Steidl attributed the company's poor financial state to United States tariffs and a subsequent 50% drop in the publisher's international sales.
In some cases, insolvency proceedings in Germany can lead to the liquidation of a company's assets in order to resolve its debts. However, the court proceedings against Steidl were closed on Thursday, July 23, after the company settled its claims, according to NDR.
The publishing house has not yet responded to multiple requests for comment from Hyperallergic.
Though it resolved its disputes in court, the publishing house reportedly relinquished its rights to the works of one of its star artists, the late German literary and visual artist Günter Grass, amid its financial fallout. NDR reports that the Günter and Ute Grass Foundation had claimed the rights to the artist's works after Steidl repeatedly defaulted on payments.
Despite its public-facing financial difficulties, Steidl is reportedly optimistic about his publishing house's future.
"What has improved significantly now, due to this economic crisis — which I acknowledge and which is actually improving daily — is that we are now over the worst of it and are managing to make ends meet," Steidl said to NDR. "A total of twelve serious investors have now contacted us: four from Switzerland, three from the USA, two from Singapore, and one from Korea."
