Incredible that you describe a 1.5 year process that cost almost 20 thousand euros (plus running costs to keep a physical presence, management and tax advisors in Germany) a perfectly reasonable solution.
The author seems to own multiple companies. They seem to have an extremely complicated tax situation. Their own personal costs and issues do not reflect the system as a whole. I’m very critical towards Germany’s tax system, but that specific article doesn’t do a good job if their goal is show how absurd things are.