Recaro folds and wheels come off BBS as financial trouble strikes car part brands

Reports have surfaced suggesting the Esslingen District Court in Germany has ordered car-seat maker Recaro into self-administration, with the firm’s economic situation under review. 

Elsewhere, fellow German company and famous wheel builder BBS has also run into financial difficulty, with the business falling into insolvency for the fifth time since 2007. 

The IG Metall union in Germany was apparently surprised by the court ruling according to Munich's SZ newspaper, claiming the 215-strong Recaro workforce were not informed of the decision. SZ said that IG Metall boss, Alessandro Lieb, claimed “employees had made sacrifices for years to keep Recaro financially stable”, such as “waiving special payments and waiting longer for wage increases”.

Recaro Automotive supplies car seats to the Volkswagen Group, as well as Ford, BMW, Renault and Honda, as well as seating for football stadiums around the world. It belongs to the wider Recaro Group, although that licensor no longer owns any shares in Recaro Automotive. Since 2020, the company has been owned by the US investment company Raven Acquisition LLC. 

It is understood that Recaro Aircraft Seating and the gaming chair producer Recaro Gaming are unaffected by this bankruptcy. 

As for BBS, the wheel firm behind a selection of iconic manufacturer partnerships announced its insolvency on Friday 26 July, after reports the company failed to pay some of its 270 employees in Germany. BBS has now been placed into administration.

What do you think about Recaro's self-administration? Let us know in the comments section below...