"That's why the branch in the arcade has had to close more often in the afternoon lately," says Penkert. Because he lacks people, he recently decided not to open the shop at all on Wednesdays. He says the summer months were particularly difficult for him, as staff were on holiday or absent due to illness. This caused him great problems in staffing his branches in Bonn. Besides the bakery in the Passage and a café on Rochusstraße, he runs shops in Röttgen and on Brüser Berg.

Why can't he find staff? "I don't know," says the 60-year-old, sounding at a loss. "I ask myself that question every day." When he does find people, they are mostly student temps who do the job for a year or two while studying - and then are gone again. A trained saleswoman is almost impossible to get, he says.

Penkert has observed that this development started about ten years ago. With Corona, the whole thing got a lot worse. He would pay good people 13 or 14 euros an hour, he says. "But no one even comes to introduce themselves." It's not just a problem that affects sales, he says; he also has a hard time finding staff for the bakery. "What am I supposed to do? I can't cut my way through," he says.

But Penkert reports that he is not the only one who cannot find staff. Other bakers have also had to shorten their opening hours because of this. He recently spoke with the owner of the Hirzmann snack bar on Rochusstraße - the same problem.

It is not only the lack of staff that worries Penkert. "When I think about the energy costs, I get scared," he says. "It's all very threatening." After all, no one knows how far they will rise. At times he thought his company would not make it, but at the moment he was still managing. But that could change quickly. He is already paying twice as much for the energy to run the production as he was a few months ago. Every bill can bring new unpleasant surprises.

But it's not just the increased energy costs that are putting a strain on him: He also pays more for ingredients such as flour and butter - he used to get ten kilos for 48 Euro a while ago, now it is 100 euros. He has passed the higher costs on to his customers: The normal roll costs six cents more, the grain roll twenty, the croissant likewise. "But the customers also have to save," says Penkert. If the rolls become more expensive, some people will certainly think twice about still buying them at the bakery.

Despite the lack of staff and the increased costs, Penkert says he does not intend to close any more branches at the moment. Provided he doesn't get any more "horror bills" for the time being.

Original text: Dennis Scherer

Translation: Mareike Graepel