The sales prices are comparatively low because the store is run by the non-profit SKM Aufbruch GmbH. The store’s target group was originally Bonn’s needy citizens. But this is no longer the only group of customers. "For many years, we’ve been noticing that more and more middle-class people are shopping with us," says specialist service provider Thomas Dedorath. In addition to bicycles, more and more cars can be found in the car parks of the department stores - including expensive models.

"The crises of the past few years have seen a change in our clientele. We have also noticed that people have less money," says Dedorath. Many of the customers now think twice about buying new clothes and look at good, second-hand items instead. The constantly rising electricity and gas prices are another reason.

The branches of the charity shop "Bedarfshilfe" in Bad Godesberg and at Brüserberg have also become an insider tip for many people against the background of rising fixed costs. "At first, in addition to people in need, people from Bonn who are concerned about sustainability came to us," says Managing Director Ludwig Klöckner. He says these included many students, as well as particularly environmentally conscious people. For them, second-hand shopping is part of their lifestyle, although they could also afford new clothes or new furnishings.

But the idea of sustainability is not necessarily the focus of all better-off customers today: "More and more families who belong to the middle class are coming to us." In recent months, Klöckner has also observed entire groups of schoolchildren in the shop who arrange to go on a shopping spree after class.

And customers usually come back. Each item of clothing - whether jeans, a fur coat or a wedding dress - costs two euros here. Children's clothes cost as little as one euro.

"We don't care what social class the customers belong to. We remain open to everyone," says Klöckner. Nevertheless, he has concerns about the coming winter. Although the department stores regularly receive new goods through donations or household liquidations, some items are nearly always out of stock, he said. "There could be a big demand for winter jackets this year. If people are trying to save on heating costs, they’re going to need to keep warm."

At the second-hand shop "Esperanza" in Bonn city centre, which specialises in children's clothing and is run by the Caritas Association for the City of Bonn, many things are already in short supply. Mechthild Greten, head of the Caritas press and public relations department, has launched an appeal for donations in kind: "Our shop has been booming for two months, the warehouses are empty." Items of clothing in sizes 80 to 116 as well as cots, prams, high chairs and toys for small children are urgently needed at the moment.

"Newborns cost a lot. Parents need a lot of new clothes for their babies," says Greten. Many families are also running out of money due to rising prices in other areas of life, he added. Greten: "Second-hand has not been shameful for a long time now". The idea of recycling and the exchange trend, which has been in vogue among many families for some years now, has already removed this limit - fortunately, she explains.

Original text: Julia Rosner / Translation: Jean Lennox