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Germany's SMEs are urgently looking for successors – but the gap between businesses ready to hand over and suitable acquirers is widening. The DIHK Report 2025 explains why the risk of closures is increasing and where action needs to be taken now.
Corporate succession is developing into one of the biggest structural issues for Germany’s SME sector in 2025. More and more entrepreneurs want or need to hand over their businesses due to age and workload – while suitable successors are often missing. Shortages of skilled workers, high costs, weak economy, and excessive regulations are further exacerbating the situation. The DIHK report highlights where the bottlenecks lie, what is holding back takeovers, and which measures are necessary to ensure the generational change in German companies succeeds.
Key Findings
Historical record: In 2024, the German Chamber of Commerce and Industry (IHK) conducted nearly 10,000 consultations with companies willing to hand over their businesses – an increase of 16% and a record high.
Significant gap between supply and demand: Around 5,620 companies lack a successor interested in taking over.
Increased risk of closure: 27% of the companies consulted are considering shutting down operations, as 92% cannot secure a successor.
Demographic pressure: 72% of previous business owners want to cease operations due to age-related reasons.
Skilled labor shortage posing double challenges: It hampers the handover process and simultaneously reduces the pool of potential successors.
More interested parties – but not enough: In 2024, 4,016 individuals expressed interest in taking over a business – a noticeable increase compared to the previous year, but still insufficient to meet demand.
Slight improvement in financing conditions: Guarantees are increasingly regarded as helpful; however, bank loans remain challenging.
Underutilized potential among women: Only a quarter of those interested in succession are women.
Purchase price & preparation remain major obstacles: 36% of previous business owners expect excessive prices, while 38% start preparing for the succession process too late.
Growing Pressure for Succession in SMEs
The number of entrepreneurs seeking to hand over or completely close their businesses reaches a record level in 2024. Key drivers include the prolonged economic crisis, structural location issues, high costs, and growing uncertainty about political frameworks. Particularly alarming: Since 2019, the gap between available businesses and suitable succession candidates has nearly doubled.
Why Companies Face Closure
92 percent of companies considering closure do so because they cannot find a suitable successor. Additional factors include shortages of skilled workers (63%), high energy and material costs (49%), and general future uncertainty (47%). In 40 percent of cases, increasing bureaucratic burdens play a decisive role, leaving businesses feeling overwhelmed without prospects in the current environment.
If a suitable successor is missing, transfers are often significantly delayed – with implications for investment readiness. Many long-standing owners refrain from investing shortly before the handover, while new owners are slowed down by lengthy approval processes. This jeopardises modernisation, innovation, and competitiveness, and increases the risk of companies being closed or taken over by larger firms.
More Takeover Interest – Gap Remains
The number of interested buyers rises significantly to4,016 persons, in 2024, but this is still insufficient given the high number of companies ready to hand over. Chamber formats such as succession centres, pools, and pitch events are becoming increasingly important and attract people looking for alternatives to uncertain employment. However, these efforts have not yet succeeded in reversing the negative trend.
About half of senior entrepreneurs want to sell their businesses. Only one-third plan a family-internal transfer, while one-fifth aim to hand over to employees. The IHKs recommend early, transparent communication so that handovers are not hindered by unresolved expectations or lack of preparation.
Financing Remains a Major Challenge
Four out of ten interested buyers report funding issues. On a positive note, guarantees increasingly provide relief, with 31 percent of IHKs reporting improvements. Bank loans remain demanding; mezzanine capital and equity continue to be difficult to raise. Solid financing thus remains a key requirement for successful transfers.
Only around a quarter of those interested in taking over a business are women – even though they already account for over 40 percent of start-ups. Women often begin their entrepreneurial journeys later, have less start-up capital, or are less integrated into networks. The IHKs, therefore, specifically focus on attracting more female successors with programs like “Become an Entrepreneur” or women’s networks.
Key challenges include a lack of candidates, unrealistic asking prices, and insufficient preparation by long-standing owners. 38 percent prepare for the handover too late, often only one to two years beforehand – far too little for legally and emotionally complex processes. Many potential successors lack realistic expectations, sufficient qualifications, or an understanding of acquisition requirements.
In the IHK consultancy, there are almost three and a half times as many hotel and gastronomy businesses as there are prospective successors. Many businesses report difficulties in recruiting staff due to the pandemic, leading to a shortage of skilled labor. Additionally, meeting government regulations such as hygiene standards and fire protection adds to the increasing financial burden.
Approximately 2,500 of the succession companies advised by the German Chambers of Commerce and Industry (IHKs) come from the trade sector, representing the highest proportion of businesses to be handed over at 25%. The stationary retail trade is highly dependent on the attractiveness of inner cities, where many IHKs report issues. Many additionally face difficulties finding suitable skilled personnel. Moreover, customer restraint from broad demographics and growing competitive pressure from online commerce further exacerbate challenges.
All of this dampens the attractiveness of many shops and stores for potential successors. Even online commerce is not a sure thing – advertising and marketing now often require considerable effort to reach enough potential customers. Investment backlogs due to insufficient digitization and renovations complicate financing and increase risk for successors. Problems are compounded when companies neglect to address changing customer needs or implement contemporary processes (such as modern payment systems or inventory management systems).
Further obstacles include bureaucracy and regulatory requirements. Economic uncertainty leads potential successors to hesitate in taking over a business. Consequently, many IHKs see the risk of more and more shops and stores not being taken over, resulting in increased vacancies and abandoned areas in city centers.
Unter den Nachfolgeinteressenten ist das Verarbeitende Gewerbe am beliebtesten – 32 Prozent suchen einen Industriebetrieb. Auf einen potenziellen Nachfolgenden kommen im Mittel 1,3 zu übergebende Betriebe – im Branchenvergleich ist das nur ein moderater Überhang. Das darf jedoch nicht über Matching-Probleme auch hier hinwegtäuschen.
Gerade in der Industrie, die entweder direkt auf ausländischen Märkten oder indirekt als Zulieferer in internationale Wertschöpfungsketten eingebunden ist, schlagen neben der Unsicherheit in der Binnenwirtschaft auch die Unwägbarkeiten der globalen Märkte (etwa Zollkosten, Lieferengpässe) auf die Unternehmen durch. Das lässt viele Interessierte zögern.
Zudem: Die Führung eines Industrieunternehmens erfordert häufig hohes technisches Know-how – etwa beim Maschinenpark, beim Labor wie auch bei behördlichen Auflagen (beispielsweise Normen, Produktkennzeichnungen, Emissionen, Qualitätssicherung, Beschaffung). Das engt den Kreis geeigneter Kandidatinnen und Kandidaten ein. Und: Teure Maschinen oder Labore und auch notwendige Immobilien etwa für Produktionsstätten machen oft erhebliche Kaufpreise erforderlich. Die Anforderungen an die Finanzierung sind daher hoch, ebenso wie die finanziellen Risiken, die die Nachfolgenden damit eingehen.
In energieintensiven Branchen sind die zu stemmemden hohen Energiekosten eine weitere Herausforderung. Zudem machen oftmals große Investitions- und Modernisierungserfordernisse wie etwa bei der Digitalisierung und der damit einhergehende Kapitalbedarf so manche Nachfolgeverhandlung nicht einfach. Bei manchen Industriebetrieben sind die Strukturen häufig stark auf den alten Inhaber oder die alte Inhaberin ausgerichtet. Von Problemen berichten IHKs auch, wenn bei Unternehmen eine hohe Abhängigkeit von wenigen Kunden vorliegt.
Können Industriebetriebe aufgrund gescheiterter Nachfolge nicht weitergeführt werden, so kann dies Auswirkungen auf die vor- und nachgelagerte Wertschöpfungskette haben, wenn etwa eine Zwischenproduktionsstufe wegfällt. Auch wertvolles technisches Know-how droht dann verlorenzugehen.
In der Logistikbranche suchen vier Mal mehr Unternehmen als potenzielle Nachfolger die IHKs auf. Ein wichtiger Grund für die schwierige Suche nach Nachfolgen ist der hohe Fachkräftemangel in dieser Branche. Viele Kraftfahrerinnen und Kraftfahrer stehen vor ihrem Ruhestand, neue qualifizierte Fachkräfte sind in dieser wettbewerbsintensiven Branche mit häufig unattraktiven Arbeitsbedingungen schwer zu finden. Die Margen sind oftmals gering, der Wettbewerbsdruck hoch.
Steigende Personal-, Maut-, Fahrzeug-, Energie- und Treibstoffkosten, Engpässe und marode Verkehrswege, hoher Termindruck, Digitalisierung, GreenLogistics-Anforderungen sowie Unsicherheiten bei der Umsetzung der Antriebswende erschweren die Suche nach interessierten Nachfolgerinnen und Nachfolgern.
Personal services struggle with owner-centric networks and relationships that are not easily transferred to new leadership. Corporate services face challenges of knowledge transfer and depend significantly on economic variations.
The innovation pressure in the finance industry and the demands on up-to-date expertise are high. Accordingly, the requirements for successors are also challenging. Moreover, the business is characterized by tight regulations.
In der IT-Branche gestaltet sich die Unternehmensnachfolge ebenfalls schwierig. Die IHKs melden fast doppelt so viele zur Übernahme anstehende IT-Betriebe wie Nachfolgeinteressenten (Relation: 1,9).
Dies ist unter anderem auf den hohen Fachkräftebedarf in der IT-Branche zurückzuführen, der durch den internationalen Wettbewerb weiter verschärft wird. Qualifizierte IT-Fachkräfte sind stark nachgefragt. Das begrenzt einerseits die Auswahl an geeigneten Nachfolgern und macht es andererseits Firmenübernehmenden schwer, geeignete Fachkräfte zu gewinnen.
Zudem verkompliziert der rasante technologische Wandel in der IT-Branche eine langfristige Nachfolgeplanung und stellt hohe Anforderungen an das fachliche und unternehmerische Know-how der potenziellen Inhaberinnen und Inhaber.
Nicht zuletzt tendieren einige IT-Talente aufgrund der vielfältigen Karrierechancen und der hohen Nachfrage eher zu technischen Spezialistenrollen, etwa in der Entwicklung, statt eine Führungsposition mit oftmals als belastend wahrgenommenen Aufgaben zu übernehmen.
