Corona pandemic, high inflation and competition from online trade are putting a strain on retailers in the shopping streets of German city centers. According to the Federal Statistical Office, sales in clothing stores from January to September 2022 fell by 11.0 percent compared to the same period in the pre-Corona year 2019, adjusted for price increases (in real terms). A similar development can also be seen in other shops typically found in inner cities.
In the first nine months, sales in stationary retail with books fell by 21.0 percent in price-adjusted terms compared to the pre-crisis period, toy shops posted a decline of 17.5 percent, as the Wiesbaden authority announced on Thursday. The declines in consumer electronics retail (minus 7.4 percent) and shoes (minus 4.9 percent) were smaller. In contrast, retail sales of jewelry and watches increased by 17.8 percent in real terms.
Online and mail order business represents a major competitor for stationary retail. From January to September 2022, this recorded a real increase in sales of 31.2 percent compared to the pre-crisis period. The stationary retail trade as a whole, which also includes pharmacies and petrol stations, only increased sales by 3.0 percent on a price-adjusted basis. However, a large number of brick-and-mortar retailers now also sell online.
According to the authority, a change in buying behavior and rising operating costs could be the reason why there are fewer and fewer shops in Germany. Within ten years, their number fell by 10.2 percent to almost 385,600 nationwide in 2020. (dpa)