Commerce in crisis Empty shop premises in Bonn city centre
Bonn · The number of empty shops in the pedestrian zone is striking. Many stores have had to close during the Corona crisis. But there have also been some new openings.
Everything as usual. The shops are open, as are restaurants and cafés. Especially at the weekend, many shoppers can be seen strolling through the pedestrian zone in Bonn's city centre, sometimes heavily loaded with bags. Everything as usual? Almost. Because now people are wearing face masks. Although face coverings are compulsory in the shops, many people leave them on outside. And those who haven't been to the city centre for a while will notice other changes too.
The number of empty shops is noticeable - is this due to Corona or was business already bad before? But there are also some new openings. The seemingly permanent building site at the market / on the corner of Sternstraße is finally coming to an end. Renovations to the Löwen pharmacy are finished, and a fashion boutique will open next door in the completely renovated premises. The Dutch fashion label Scotch and Soda has also reopened in the former GA office on Bottlerplatz, where Fahrrad Stromann used to be.
In the Kaiserpassage, already characterised by the number of vacancies, one of the last remaining stores - a shoe shop - has a clearance sale. A vegetarian snack bar called Next has moved into a former tailor's shop in Friedrichstraße, and a bit further east towards Belderberg, the former golf shop will soon be offering food and drink: Bono-Food is the name of the new restaurant. The former Bettenhaus Nießen in Friedrichstraße is still available for rent. The future of the building, which had housed Deckers' weapon and sporting goods store since 1903, has long been a mystery. Two years ago, shop owner Susanne Deckers closed the traditional store because she was unable to find a successor, and she sold the property. Since then, construction work has been going on, but so far it has not been possible to find out who or what will be moving in.
A new kebab shop is also about to open: In Poststraße, work on the conversion of the former Lubig bakery is in its final stages. Doner kebabs and other dishes will soon be prepared in the new Mangal. By the way - the owner is footballer Lukas Podolski, who also runs the ice cream parlour Ice Cream United just across the street. Apparently, the fashion boutique Colloseum is being renovated not far away. A sign on the veiled shop window announces a new opening, but without a date.
The closure of a cheap bakery chain on Münsterplatz is bearable, Bonn certainly has enough of these. Not far from there, In der Sürst, fans of fast Italian cuisine stand in front of closed doors at Vapiano. As is well known, the operator has filed for insolvency; it is doutbful whether the branch will open again. Some empty shops can also be seen along Sternstraße, one of the most popular shopping streets with its many listed buildings. For example, a sign on the Promod clothes store reads ‘temporary closure’, but the shop is deserted and the neon sign above the entrance door has been removed.
Jannis Vassiliou has his sights firmly set on the development of Bonn's inner city, especially since the chairman of the Bonn/Rhein-Sieg/Euskirchen retail association has his own jewellery shop in Sternstraße. He is convinced that the Corona crisis will leave a number of shops and restaurants by the wayside, and so he is making an urgent appeal to the city council and administration to ensure that the centre remains easily accessible to motorists. “Commerce is the heart of the city centre, without it, the city dies.” His greatest concern is the reopening of the city ring road and that the “games with all the tests finally come to an end”.
Vassiliou looks with concern at the future of the two large department stores Galeria Kaufhof and Karstadt. “Unfortunately, we as an association are not informed about what is going to happen.” Both stores were merged in 2019 under the umbrella of Signa Holding, a company belonging to the Austrian investor René Benko. Signa also owns part of the real estate in Viktoriakarree between Rathausgasse and Franziskanerstrasse, where the company wanted to build a shopping centre. The plans failed in 2015 due to a public petition. Subsequent plans for a public workshop and housing development have not yet been implemented.
(Original text: Lisa Inhoffen, Translation: Caroline Kusch)
