Lufthansa Group is evaluating the possible sale of LSG Sky Chefs, its catering unit, Bloomberg has reported citing inside sources.
Among the three options under review is a complete divestment, a tie-up with a competitor, or selling a stake to another airline. The process is at an early stage and no decision has been taken yet; Lufthansa might still choose to retain the full ownership of LSG Sky Chefs.
The German group has been led to consider LSG Sky Chefs' future due to the sluggish growth of this unit. In 2017, the catering unit earned just EUR45 million euros (USD51.5 million) before interest and tax and had an adjusted EBIT margin of just 2.1%. The unit's revenues stood at EUR3.2 billion euros (USD3.7 billion) and were nearly flat compared to the year before.
LSG Sky Chefs' US predecessor Sky Chefs was founded in 1942 by American Airlines (AA, Dallas/Fort Worth) and ended up in Lufthansa's control in 2001 after Lufthansa's unit Lufthansa Service GmbH acquired all remaining shares in Sky Chefs from private equity investor Onex Corporation and merged the two companies.
