Grupo Abril files for bankruptcy protection on the day of Lula's comeback.
The Abril group filed for judicial reorganization this Wednesday (15); the judicial reorganization plan will be shown to creditors within 60 days, if approved; from then on, the debt, which reaches R$ 1,6 billion, is frozen; the publisher of Veja, which led the hate campaign against former president Lula, goes bankrupt on the day that thousands of people take to Brasília to register Lula's candidacy.
Do Infomoney - The Abril group filed for judicial reorganization (RJ) this Wednesday (15). The request was formalized in the electronic Justice system and should be analyzed by a judge in the coming weeks. The judicial reorganization plan will be shown to creditors within 60 days, if approved. From then on, the debt, which reaches R$ 1,6 billion, is frozen and the company enters a period of judicial protection of 180 days, in which it cannot be executed by creditors who are subject to RJ.
The situation was detailed by Exame, a publication of Grupo Abril. On its website, Exame stated that the measure serves to rebalance the company's accounts, which have been greatly affected in recent years due to two main factors: the technological disruption that makes it necessary to rethink the production and distribution model of content, and the economic crisis that the country has been facing.
The announcement comes almost a month after the Civita family, which controls the company, announced the hiring of the restructuring firm Alvarez & Marsal (A&M). Since then, the executive presidency of Abril has been in the hands of Marcos Haaland, an executive partner at A&M.
Haaland has already implemented cost-cutting measures, including laying off a large portion of the workforce – around 800 people – and halting production of some magazines and websites. "We will emerge from bankruptcy as soon as possible, with the company once again financially sound and in a position to have a long digital future," he told the website.
According to the executive, the economic crisis has truly affected the sector. "Of the total advertising investment by large companies in 2010, 8,4% was directed towards magazines. This share fell to 3% in 2017. Magazine circulation, in the same period, dropped from 444 million copies per year to 217 million," he stated.
He also reported that Abril's revenue fell from R$1,4 billion four years ago to R$1 billion in 2017 – mainly due to reduced advertising. The group's net revenue reached almost R$1 billion, with a loss of R$300 million in the past year.
Given the situation, the group retains approximately 3 employees, and its remaining portfolio consists of Veja, Veja SP, Exame, Você S/A, Você RH, Quatro Rodas, Placar, Capricho, Claudia, Portal M de Mulher, Bebe.com, Saúde, Viagem e Turismo, Superinteressante, Guia do Estudante, and Vip.