René Kaplick’s New Handbook Boosts Succession Planning in German Gastronomy

On 25 July 2026, Gastro Piraten released the practice handbook „Das Lebenswerk übergeben“, authored by René Kaplick. The book offers concrete steps to help German restaurateurs, hoteliers and family‑run hospitality businesses plan and execute successful ownership transitions, aiming to curb the high risk of closures in the sector.

According to the KfW Nachfolge‑Monitoring, roughly 109 000 German midsize firms will seek succession each year from 2025 to 2029, and one‑quarter of firms without a successor face shutdown. The handbook, structured in 14 chapters with real‑world case studies, checklists and highlight boxes, details three main transfer models—family succession, external sale and management‑buy‑out—while addressing financial, tax and organisational aspects. It claims that targeted preparation can lift a sale price by an average of €76 000 within 18 months and outlines tax‑benefit opportunities up to €700 000. Kaplick stresses the importance of “invisible capital” such as regular guests, employees and suppliers, noting that many owners plan menus more meticulously than their succession.

The book is available for purchase on Amazon and is intended to make succession planning systematic and economically viable for Germany’s gastronomy sector.