Bagel Brothers says goodbye after 15 years Popular bagel shop at the Bonn bus station closes
Bonn · Good bagels are not easy to find in Bonn and a popular bagel shop located in Bonn city center near the bus station is closing its doors after 15 years. The coronavirus pandemic is only partly to blame.
After about 15 years in business, Michael Nierwetberg, who runs Bagel Brothers Bonn, has decided to close the doors once and for all. He says there are two main reasons for closing down: One of them is that the coronavirus pandemic has eliminated his supply and delivery business for companies, which generated a large part of his revenues.
A second reason is that rents had risen sky high in the new year. This was also one reason why Nierwetberg actually wanted to move the branch to Poppelsdorf. Add to that, the large construction site at Maximilian Center had not optimally allowed the flow of guests to Bagel Brothers, which meant a loss of around 40 percent of their walk-in customers.
Bonn's economy is not doing itself any favors with the increasing number of restaurants in the city center, he says: "Competition stimulates business, but also (allows eateries) to eat each other up." At the opening of Bagel Brothers 15 years ago, the company had to fight to receive an operating license. Originally, Nierwetberg wanted to close the store last Saturday but then extended it again by almost a week in order to bid an appropriate farewell to his regular customers.
The company has been in existence since 1995, when it founded its first two branches in Leipzig. Nierwetberg was the first franchisee of the company. He helped to open 16 branches throughout Germany, all of which have since closed. With the branch in Bonn, the last of them is now also closing, leaving only the stores in Leipzig. On January 1, a one-euro store will move into the building.
