Following last week’s opening of the Pevec shopping center in Bjelovar, the centers in Jankomir, Zadar, and Pula opened their doors to customers today. During the opening of the center in Zagreb’s Jankomir, the bankruptcy administrator Darko Šket expressed satisfaction that they managed to open the centers in a relatively short time since the bankruptcy was initiated (bankruptcy of Pevec Zagreb was opened on February 5) and that customers have returned.
On this occasion, Šket also reported that in the first week since the opening, the center in Bjelovar achieved higher sales than in the same period in 2008 and 2009. In addition to the mentioned four centers, the centers in Osijek and Koprivnica are expected to open soon, followed by Slavonski Brod and Rijeka a bit later. Thus, eight centers owned by Pevec out of a total of 16 should continue to operate, and there is a possibility that some of the remaining eight, where Pevec was a tenant, will also open their doors to customers.
– All suppliers reacted positively to the reopening of the centers and agreed to deliver goods under the same business conditions, i.e., payment terms as they had before – explained Šket, who believes that all suppliers will return to Pevec when they see that the centers are performing well and that the company pays its obligations on time.
The continuation of the bankruptcy proceedings for Pevec Bjelovar will be decided at a hearing to be held on Tuesday in Bjelovar. At that time, suppliers are expected to accept the company’s bankruptcy plan, and on May 18, the same decision should be made by the creditors of Pevec Zagreb. One option of the bankruptcy plan is to convert suppliers’ claims into ownership shares, while another involves debt restructuring. In any case, Pevec’s centers should continue to operate even in bankruptcy, as this is the best option for both creditors and employees. – A necessary prerequisite for continuing operations is that the centers can meet all their obligations, which I believe we will succeed in – said Šket, who expects that the eight centers could generate around one billion kuna in revenue. (A. K.)
