Insolvency of Sympatex: New start with a skeleton team

Sympatex Technologies GmbH, a developer and manufacturer of functional membranes for sports and outdoor clothing, is venturing a new start after insolvency. The Italian company Pidigi S.p.A. will continue business operations. However, the company has shrunk considerably. At the time of the insolvency, 70 people were employed in Germany - in future there will only be 25. Sympatex has been developing and producing non-porous membrane technology at European locations since 1986. The membranes are used in functional clothing, footwear, workwear and protective equipment.

The responsible insolvency administrator Axel W. Bierbach has announced the solution for the continuation of Sympatex Technologies in a press release. The Munich-based textile company will be transferred to Pidigi S.p.A. and a German subsidiary by means of an asset deal. Pidigi is an owner-managed Italian supplier to the footwear, leather goods and clothing industry that has been established on the market for more than 70 years. The company develops and distributes materials and components for industrial applications.

Locations and workplaces

The Unterföhring site near Munich will be retained with 21 jobs and four apprenticeships. The international locations in France, China and Hong Kong as well as the Korean sales office will continue to operate. As part of the structural reorganisation, 25 employees at the Unterföhring site will be made redundant. Around 20 employees have already left the company independently during the provisional insolvency administration phase. Kim Scholze, who has led Sympatex through the insolvency proceedings as sole managing director, will leave the company once the transaction has been finalised.

Pidigi with sales of 80 million euros

Pidigi has been working with Sympatex for several decades. The Italian family business uses laminates and membranes from Sympatex, which Pidigi uses in its footwear and clothing range. This results in operational and economic synergy potential along the value chain. Pidigi has been active on the market since 1953 and has specialised over the years in the supply of materials for the footwear, leather goods and technical sportswear industries. Pidigi's eight international subsidiaries ensure a distribution and logistics network on the global markets and contribute to a total turnover of over 80 million euros.

Sympatex: Former owners sentenced

In 2023, the company hit the headlines because the Munich I public prosecutor's office remanded the former owners Stephan Goetz and Stefan Sanktjohanser in custody and investigated them for fraud totalling millions of euros. At the centre of the case was a €13 million bond issued by Sympatex Technologies in 2013. Following a deal with the public prosecutor's office, the first sentences were handed down in October 2025. The defendants, including the owner Stefan S. and the restructuring expert Frank G., received suspended prison sentences and heavy fines (in some cases in 261 separate offences). In April 2026, the judgements were also confirmed before the Federal Court of Justice.