We are Short HelloFresh SE $HFG.
Our new research report is online now.
HelloFresh SE’s Last Supper: Executives Carve Up Value Before the Collapse
You can read the report here: grizzlyreports.com/hfg1/
Our new research report is online now.
HelloFresh SE’s Last Supper: Executives Carve Up Value Before the Collapse
You can read the report here: grizzlyreports.com/hfg1/
HelloFresh $HFG operates a subscription-based meal kit delivery service. Despite rapid growth during COVID lockdowns, the business is now in sharp decline, with management seemingly prioritizing self-enrichment at shareholders' expense.
CEO Dominik Richter's private company borrowed massively against his HelloFresh’s $HFG shares to fund highly leveraged real estate investments by his brother Benedikt Richter, apparently triggering margin calls amid a steep share price drop. Our estimates indicate another significant margin call looms with just a 23% further decline and that Richter and his entities have run out of cash as well as shares to pledge.
HelloFresh’s $HFG aggressive buyback program, backed by an activist with a history of value destruction, has burned ~€100m YTD 2025 yet failed to stop the share price from dropping ~50% YTD. We believe the accelerated pace is a desperate bid to avert CEO margin calls amid persistent business underperformance.
Co-founder Thomas Griesel has repeatedly extracted value by selling call options on HelloFresh $HFG shares, which is one of the more egregious conflicts of interest for a sitting executive we have seen.
Share transaction patterns around recent quarterly announcement suggest potential insider trading via frontrunning.
Core demand is collapsing: since 2022 peaks, U.S. Google searches for HelloFresh $HFG are down 80%, website traffic is down over 61%, and its app has fallen from top-20 to outside the top-100 in Food & Drink downloads.
Management obscures this via KPI manipulation, emphasizing "high-value" customers amid high churn, inflating growth with food price rises, and pivoting to saturated, low-margin segments.
HelloFresh's $HFG reputation is tarnished by ethical lapses and corner-cutting, including:
U.S. child labor law probe (December 2024)
Several clashes with employees in Germany, the U.S. and U.K. over “horrible working conditions”, union busting, and a retaliatory site closure
U.S. regulators traced E. Coli infections in multiple states to HelloFresh (2022)
Abrupt Japan unit closure without timely employee notice (December 2022)
False marketing claims, including about CO2 neutral production and ethical chicken treatment
$7.5M settlement for deceptive subscription enrollment (August 2025)
$14M settlement for illegal telemarketing (2021)
1.3/5 star review ratings, driven by overcharging, faulty cancellation tools, and app issues; subscription cancellations are deliberately obstructive
U.S. child labor law probe (December 2024)
Several clashes with employees in Germany, the U.S. and U.K. over “horrible working conditions”, union busting, and a retaliatory site closure
U.S. regulators traced E. Coli infections in multiple states to HelloFresh (2022)
Abrupt Japan unit closure without timely employee notice (December 2022)
False marketing claims, including about CO2 neutral production and ethical chicken treatment
$7.5M settlement for deceptive subscription enrollment (August 2025)
$14M settlement for illegal telemarketing (2021)
1.3/5 star review ratings, driven by overcharging, faulty cancellation tools, and app issues; subscription cancellations are deliberately obstructive
We expect HelloFresh's $HFG removal from the MDAX index in December 2025.
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