Fight for survival: Stralsund retailers suffer from Christmas stress!

Fight for survival: Stralsund retailers suffer from Christmas stress!

In Stralsund, the traders at the weekly market are currently not getting any peace. Current challenges in connection with the Christmas market are causing sleepless nights and noticeable losses in sales. While the political discussion about fees has flared up, customer traffic is lagging behind expectations.

The AfD recently submitted an application to reduce the stand fees for weekly market traders during the Christmas market, but this was rejected by the citizens. The city does not see itself as responsible and refers to Rostocker Großmarkt GmbH, which organizes the markets. This was also the reason for criticism from parliamentary group leader Sandra Graf, who discussed the retailers' dramatic sales losses. Her colleague from the CDU/FDP parliamentary group, Thomas Haack, noted that there was no source of coverage for a fee reduction. In addition, the left-wing politician Bernd Buxbaum said that the AfD proposal had “gone nowhere,” while the dealer Olaf Reichert recorded a decline of 40 to 50 percent in his sales.

The situation at the Christmas market

The Christmas market in Stralsund is only accessible under a strict 2G+ regulation, which only allows entry to those who have been vaccinated and those who have recovered with a negative test. According to Großmarkt GmbH, this regulation could potentially lead to a significant loss of sales for retailers and showmen. In order to accommodate small business owners in these difficult times, an application for a fee waiver was submitted, but this was also met with resistance.

The alternative area on the Schützenbastion, where the traders have set up their stands, has so far proven to be uninviting. Retailers are reporting a noticeable decline in customers, especially on rainy or bad weather days, which is further depressing sales. “It's depressing to have hardly any customers when the weather is nice and especially not when it's wet,” says Thomas Haack. Internationalization and geopolitically uncertain times also contribute to concerns, as the German trade association notes. Overall, he expects a mixed Christmas business in German retail and is suffering from consumers' tight wallets.

Sales situation and expectations

The Christmas business this year shows some differences between industries. While perfumeries and jewelry stores, for example, are reporting positive results, many retail traders are faced with a decline in sales. The preventative measures against COVID-19 also seem to influence shopping behavior. The feeling of uncertainty and the upcoming elections are causing many people to hold on to their money.

The trade association's sales forecasts for November and December are rather negative. They had originally expected revenues of around 121 billion euros for this period, but the joy of consumerism fell by the wayside. “The Christmas business will not go as planned,” sums up one retailer. After the holidays, however, some consumers may become more active again, encouraged by gifts or vouchers. There is still hope - in the bakery and the miller, the saleswomen can laugh and bring their rolls and drinks to the buyer and smile, even if the big numbers are not in the room.

It remains to be seen how the situation will develop further. The Stralsund weekly market and the traders are hoping for a turnaround that could stabilize their economic situation. Until that happens, they need to continue to court customers and stay on top of their offerings.

The Stralsund weekly market is therefore under pressure, and the coming weeks will be decisive in determining whether traders can increase their sales or whether political decisions will further aggravate the traders' already tense situations. The magic of Christmas could be less brilliant for many this year.

For more information and insights, I recommend taking a look at the reporting from moin.de, webris.stralsund.de and tagesschau.de. This means you are well informed about what is happening in Stralsund and the challenges that retailers are currently having to overcome.