Photo Gallery KaDeWe Under Threat
Kaufhaus des Westens, better known as KaDeWe, was founded in 1907. It survived two world wars, the depression, a Nazi takeover, and the Cold War.
KaDeWe's seven floors of merchandise includes luxury clothes and accessories, "Beauty Lounges" offering spa treatments, and a gourmet department offering more than 34,000 delicacies from around the world.
About 180,000 people visit the store each day, many of them tourists and expatriates seeking hard-to-find foods on the gourmet floors.
Arcandor's CEO, Karl-Gerhard Eick, said a sale of KaDeWe "cannot be ruled out." The department store will be bundled into a group of high-end stores that includes the German chain Karstadt.
Selling Atrys could potentially stem 300 million in losses for Arcandor.
Arcandor says the spinoff of KaDeWe and high-end sister stores in Hamburg and Munich would allow the firm to re-focus on middle-class consumers.
