Berlin club Renate to close permanently in 2025

Berlin club Renate will close permanently in 2025 when its current lease comes to an end. 

The club has released a statement, explaining that they could not find an agreement with Gijora Padovicz, a real estate magnate who owns a number of buildings in the area, to extend the lease. They own the building housing Renate itself, and another building that is home to one of the city’s most prominent electronic music institutions, Watergate.

“The reason for this is the expiry of the lease agreement with the notorious property investor Gijora Padovicz,” the statement from Renate read. “Despite intensive efforts to find an extension to the contract or alternative solutions, the club operators have to face the fact that Renate will no longer be able to continue in its current form.”

The team have confirmed they intend to continue activities at a new location, although no details have been revealed at this time. Likewise, nothing has been confirmed about the fate of M01, a sister venue opened by Renate and open-air club ELSE in 2023, which is located on the same block.  

“The ousting of Renate is not an isolated case,” the statement from Renate continued. “Time and again, clubs and other socio-cultural institutions in Berlin are repeatedly threatened by similar developments. The Padovicz Group plays a role that should not be underestimated. 

“The loss of these spaces is not just a blow for club culture, but for the entire city as a whole and its cultural diversity. Clubs like Renate are important places of encounter, exchange and creative development that characterise Berlin internationally.”  

Renate opened as Salon Zur Wilden Renate in 2007, and has hosted a number of highly respected parties since then. However, its tenure has not been without controversy, with a former-PR manager accusing colleagues of racism and harassment in 2020, resulting in the club apologising, launching a sensitivity training programme, and hiring two awareness managers. 

Earlier this year, Berlin’s Rave the Planet collective were successful in their bid to inscribe Berlin techno to the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage list. Among other things, those behind the application hope the campaign will pressure local government to do more to protect venues. Last year, the city’s Senator for Culture announced €947million would be spent on creating new cultural spaces, clubs, museums and more.