Alone among men: the new Karstadt boss Eva-Lotta Sjöstedt
Even before her official start, she has been touring through the department stores of the Karstadt chain, has been working at the cash register, advising on suitcases and sorting socks. She wanted to get a comprehensive picture of the troubled company. Since the end of February, Eva-Lotta Sjöstedt is now officially CEO of the department store group. It's supposed to tidy up the company, which has only been in the red since its acquisition by Nicolas Berggruen.
Whether this photo, released in time for the official launch of their new assignment, is part of a new shirt sleeve strategy? Probably not. The boss poses with her management team in a, one might suspect, colorful Karstadt showcase. She: completely dressed in black, centrally positioned, a taffes, but friendly smile on her lips. Her six male colleagues: Jacket off with a grin on her face. A relaxed but energetic atmosphere should be transported. In fact, the scenery seems a bit too staged, a bit too much of a heal-the-world-shopping-at-the-Karstadt showcase.
Conspicuous: Only colleague Kai-Uwe Weitz (left) is allowed to sit. Everyone else is standing or squatting around Sjöstedt. Is the hiring manager resting as a precaution for the upcoming fight with Verdi? Finally, Karstadt has recently withdrawn from regional retail collective bargaining to save costs. Despite her dominating positioning in this photo, Sjöstedt, which she emphasizes, stands for flat hierarchies in everyday working life.
In any case, Sjöstedt wants to show that she can tackle as a team leader. She has already proven this with her former employer Ikea. Great credit to the company, especially in the Japanese market, is attributed to her as CEO. She wants to push for a greater variety in the 83 branches and for less "uniformity in retail". She has now started with a sumptuously set table: bread, sausage, fruit, coffee, traveling, fashion ... nothing should be lacking. The furniture may have taken her from her last Ikea catalog. In any case, Sjöstedt looks confident in the future. Only her male colleagues, she still has to carry her along.
