We were appointed by a consortium of banks, led by Goldman Sachs, to become a co-investor in Ihr Platz and provide restructuring and industry expertise.  The drugstore brand had a network of 689 retail stores and, after several years of difficult trading, its debt was acquired by a number of investors.  Having provided rescue funding to get the brand through Christmas trading, a radical restructure was initiated, which required placing the business into an insolvency plan of reorganisation proceeding (‘Planinsolvenz’) to enable flexibility for the turnaround.  A groundbreaking move, this was the first time this strategy was successfully implemented in Germany.  A review of the trading and property portfolio led to a decision to close 81 stores, which we were instructed to trade out.  This allowed for the clearance of redundant stock from the entire estate, providing vital, immediate liquidity.  We ran promotional campaigns across the 81 stores, selling all stock and delivering ‘broom-clean’ stores on schedule.  Our financial guarantee was paid in advance, enabling the management team to negotiate more easily with insolvency stakeholders.  Once the company exited the insolvency proceedings, our position as an active shareholder provided ongoing industry expertise and financial support for growth plans.  We assisted with a new store concept roll-out with an improved promotional strategy and supply chain.  Once stable, Ihr Platz was sold to a strategic competitor and continues to trade successfully.