Germany rejects Sunday shopping

Germany rejects Sunday shopping - BBC News

...yet another step backwards into the "consumer dark ages"

It think it's all very hypocrictical, thousands of people have to work on Sundays,
why can Bakeries, cafes, flowershops and restaurants open on Sunday but nobody
else ? not forgetting nurses, doctors and all manner of public service and transport workers, I wish they'd stop hanging on to their obession with regulating everything and let people decide for themselves.

This may be a bit cynical but I don't think it's really about protecting those who work in shops. This is a country where the state collects taxes on behalf of the church.

Well, I mean, it's not as if they've got millions of unemployed and the economy's in the doldrums or anything, is it...?

Kaufhof would do better if they bothered to employ enough staff when they ARE open. I'm sure they would do more business if they opened all the tills on a Saturday and the queues weren't halfway out into the street. The only time I have ever been able to find a sales assistant to answer a question or help find something has been before 10 o'clock on a weekday morning.

This isn't a whinge, just an observation. I don't really care what day of the week I go shopping but a bit of customer service would make a world of difference.

Actually this is good news ...

... allow me to explain myself, at the moment it is being debated whether to scrap the Sunday-truck-ban in Germany. If the principle of rest on Sundays and public holidays was "sacrosanct" then I wont be made to start work Sunday afternoon instead of Sunday night.

If Sunday is a day of rest, why are you expected to get your body out of bed and into church?

Like it Steve, that's definetly my attitude!

Germany just doesnt like change just look around they are still stuck in the 80's

TV: Stand Up Comedy, 80's Soaps, Sketch shows, & Action series

Music: Right Said Fred, enough said

Hey come on everybody, everyone seems to complain that Germany is 20 years behind anywhere else. That is NOT fair. Right Said Fred sung songs in Britain in the early 90's so I think that this is a maximum of 14 years behind.

It's amusing though how they still release songs in DE but have quit back in Britain eventhough they're British!

from what I can see sunday shopping would never catch on here..I mean we have visited a few towns where saturday shopping hasnt taken on yet an the most action you see is a piece of tumble weed blowing across the main street.. and the loudest sound you here is an old sign creaking...enough said... :excl:

Its funny you should say that Neil, I know a lot of people back hame in Ireland who actually regret the fact that the shops are open on a Sunday... the reason being it has just become another normal day of queues and traffic-jams.


Rebecca, me thinks you have hit a very large nail on the head. Excellent observation

I couldnt care less if the shops were open on a Sunday... actually I would care, and I would hate it because there would be traffic-jams right outside my door. All these Slackmacks sitting in their lorries. No thank you.

Damn right!

I would have to agree. Keep Sundays shopping free. I like to chill out on Sundays. Don't make it into another day with crowded streets full of cars and people.
Sundays in the UK just feel like any other normal day.

And that comes from someone who would benefit from shopping on Sundays as I tend to do my grocery shopping at 7.50pm on Saturday.

(Just noticed that this a quite an old thread from 2004!!)

sousey's fault! I never really look at the date bits

Now and again, the towns have a "goldene Sonntag" round this way, ALL shops open on a sunday in the town Center, and they put on a bit of street entertainment and so on.
And You can`t move cause so many people are there! Reckon the shops take just as much money in one day, as in the whole week, (excluding Sat.)

God forbid that people should be allowed to make decisions for themselves.

I guess it isn't much of an issue in an area with 20% unemployment. The term 'weekend' kind of loses its meaning. But as one of the few people who has a job, it'd be nice to have more than one day to get all of my shopping done.

I agree that the shops should stay closed on a Sunday. I personally find Saturday is enough time to do al the shopping I could ever need to do (yes you are reading this correctly!)

The only thing I would prefer were if supermarkets could stay open a little later than 20:00 during the week. I find that by the time I have finished work and gone running or to the gym or whatever it is too late to go and get some essentials such as bread and milk for my marmite on toast supper! I get around that by shopping at lunch time at the moment though.

I was going to agree about late night shopping during the week until I read marmite on toast. yuk!

Seriously would be useful for me also as I tend to leave work well after 8pm. I know you can use petrol stations but they just dont have a wide enough selection.
The other alternative are the shops at the Hauptbahnhof which stay open till 9 or 10pm, but not really on my way home.

Don't necessarily agree with longer opening hours but maybe a bit of "focus" is required. If they were to ban old people and the unemployed and the like from shopping before 9:00, between 12:00 and 14:00 and after 18:30, or charge them 25% more, this would make sure the shops are relatively empty, giving my Mrs plenty of time after work to get in the essentials.

Should have known not to mention that one!! Tonight I'll have cheese on toast instead!

Yes the petrol stations have a tiny selection for an enormous price!

@ Maaph does it really matter if the shops are empty or not if the Mrs does the shopping anyway??

I think shopping in Germany must be about the most unpleasantest in the whole of Europe (with the exception of the old eastern bloc). When are they finally going to wake up and bring things into the 21st century.

As for sundays, why should sunday be "sacrosanct"? And if shops must shut on sundays, why arent kneipen also required to be closed all day sundays? Alcohol on sunday. Very bad.

But we`re not all christians anyway these days. There are now millions of muslim in Germany, as well as other beliefs as well. Buddhists, atheists, also the occasional hindu.. Stop trying to "Gleichschalt" everyone and everything! Its bad for the german image.

i think it is great for those people who don't wish to shop on sunday. they can relax and spend time at home or do whatever they want to.

But i don't see why they shoudl dictate to others when the shops should open. If they don't want to shop, then fine, they stay at home relaxing. But at least the people who DO want to shop (many can't shop on saturdays because of work or other committments) can shop if they so wish.

Opening on sunday will also make saturday shopping more bearable bacause some shoppers will switch. Some people will also purchase more than they do now because they have the opportunity.

If I could shop on sunday afternoons, the pizza delivery places round here would have less business.

I don't even see why it's great for them. Nobody will force them to shop on Sunday, so they can go on doing what they're doing now.


Damn right about that. Shopping on Saturday is like the 9th ring of hell (I forget how many rings hell has, but it's in there between mosquito bites and Tokio Hotel concerts).

Just wait until next Saturday. With Friday and Monday as holidays, it will be less pleasent than Somali UN food depot.

i meant the status quo is great for them because that is what they want. sod the rest of us. i suppose i shoudl have used [MODE=SARCASM]

Not relaxing if you live in the city or near a shopping street...

I must admit when I first came to Germany it was very frustrating not being able to shop on Sundays...it still is sometimes. But I have also come to realise that it is quite nice having one day a week without any stress (as some of the Irish people that maisflocke mentioned have come to realise as well).

I wonder what Berger Str. (a street full of shops and streetside cafes) would be like on Sundays if all the shops were open. Probably not a pleasant one to drink your coffee.

But I do think it is inevitable that corporations will eventually get their way and Sunday will become just like a normal working day. It's all part of globalisation

I do remember reading somewhere that during the World Cup the shops are planning to be open 24/7 (including Sundays).

Here's that article, but extended hours during the World Cup and maybe 24/7 next year:


Source: 24/7 Shopping Coming to Germany?

I must say where I live it is very busy during the week, lots of traffic on the road etc...but on sunday it is quite quiet and much more laid back... Therefore I think that the shops should stay closed on Sunday. Perhaps it would be a good idea during the world cup in order to help the fans. Also I think we all need a rest one day a week. Theres nothing better to wake up and hear the birds singing, bells chiming etc...

Also yes I admit it I re-awoke the topic (I was probably half asleep)

I too think that sunday shopping will most likely eventually also come to Germany simply through the power of big business.

Agree that a day without business and shops open is also relaxing. But arent public holidays ("Bank holidays") there for that purpose. We have some 12 or 14 days or so public holidays per year in Germany, thats at least one per month on average.

Im for 7 days a week opening, with the public/bank holidays kept "sacrosanct" with everything closed on those days.

Wasn't it exactly the opposite back in the UK (before Sunday trading)? I remember that Sundays everything was closed, but Bank Holiday Monday we'd all be doing DIY or gardeneing, so B&Q was open, the garden center was open and (bizarrely enough) I seem to remember huge furniture shops being open ie MFI or there used to be one called UK...

There's nothing nicer than pottering around on a long weekend, doing a bit of fixing up in the house or garden...

Tbh, I quite like it quiet on Sundays. It makes you have a more relaxing day when there is no chance of shopping. For those that work full time, it would be a good idea if the shops opened later in the week.
When we first came here, my kids said its sooooooo old fashioned here! But yesterday in no uncertain terms they all told me one after the after...there is no way we are moving back to England, its much better here! Ahhhhhh...months of worrying about them...now I can breathe again

sorry but I find this "relaxing" argument to be selfish and also rather "bullshit" (sorry can't think of a less offensive way to say it.

You don't need to close all the shops to find somewhere to relax. When I am in my own home, I can relax (or not) regardless of what is going on outside. If I wish to find a nice café to sit and drink a beverage and watch the world go by, I can certainly find one, even on a saturday!

(Besides that raises the question: what makes it perfectly ok in your eyes to open a café or restaurant on a sunday but not a shop? shouldn't it be equal rights for all businesses?)

One can relax any day of the week IF YOU SO WISH, you don't need a law to help you do it! I also fnd it it selfish of others that just because they have no desire to shop on a sunday, they want to prevent others from doing so and invent (allbeit imo) baseless arguments.

Growing up as a kid, with a working single father, we often ran out of critical fresh stuff cos he was not able to shop at times others could. He was an airlines pilot so could not plan his week to always have free time when the shops were open. There are plenty of people in this situation today, providing services for other people, yet don't get the same consideration in return.

Yes fair point about relaxing etc. But I do like the fact that the roads seem quieter (they are where I live) on a Sunday and this surely has to do with the fact that the shops are closed

Hammering your fingernails, cutting your hand, falling off the ladder...


There was a feature on german news tv channel N-TV a year or two ago about how Easter Bank Holiday weekend in the UK is the busiest time of all for hospital Accident and Emergency departments!

Ithink that the Idea isn't bad.
Opening 24/7 possible, but from 06:00 to 22:00 (mon-sat) and 10:00 - 17:00 (sun) would be fine, but public holidays should stay closed

I agree completely with Owain Glyndwr. The 'peace and quite' arguements strike me as rather selfish. If you live on a street that is so adversely affected, well, then move if it is that important to you. If you are so bothered by traffic, living in a business district may not have been a wise decision. I live in a residential area near a large park, so if anything Sundays are the MOST busy days.

I escpecially don't understand the 'It makes you have a more relaxing day when there is no chance of shopping'. Are you so weak minded that if you know that somewhere out there shopping is being done, you must join in? Do you really have to be forced to relax?

The law as it is may have made sense in some by-gone era. It may even be quaint. But it is also impractical and not relevant to modern life where not everybody lives in a family where dad works 35 hours Monday to Friday and mom sits at home and has plenty of time to get all the shopping and housework done during the week so the family can go to church and visit Grandma's grave, and maybe eat an ice cream later on Sunday.

Why not trust shopkeepers and consumers to make their own decisions?

I wouldn't consider myself weak minded at all...and I certainly don't need to be froced to relax either. I loved the Sunday shopping in England but I certainly don't miss it. I was merely stating that I don't mind the shops closed on a Sunday here. I am fortunate enough to be able to do my shopping during normal opening times but can understand those that work full time.

Not an attack, Ami, but me finds people simply expecting people to pay for the costs of a move - including double rent during the move period - a lot more selfish than people "wanting" people to effectively save their dosh by not being able to spend it ...

Yes! The classic traditional german family. Kinder, Kirche, Küche (or is it Kuchen?

I think this assumption is still going strong amongst the establishment here. Thats why they send all the schoolkids home at 1pm in the afternoon, on the assumption that mum can afford to stay at home all day to cater for the kids.

100% agree!

Kuchen kochen in die Küche!

Okay, its backen but kochen sounds better

If you live somewhere that would be so unbearable if Sunday shopping were allowed, presumably the traffic and noise is bad the other six days of the week. if you are a person who is bothered by this, I would suggest that living there was a bad decision in the first place. If you demand quiet, move to a quiet neighbourhood. Germany has plenty of them.


OK, if you say you are not weak minded, I take your word. But you wrote: 'It makes you have a more relaxing day when there is no chance of shopping', which I would argue suggests a profound lack of will power.

I personally am able to walk past an open shop without going in. I'm also able to spend an entire day at home or in the park not shopping (as I am sure you are as well), even if I know that it would be possible. I find the idea that I need the state to protect me from shopping deeply insulting. Are they going to send Angie around to change my diaper (excuse me, nappy), too?

Valid point - but if you had the choice of continuing to live in a house where the psycho landlord voilently smashes down your door because the sound of your footsteps bother him, or picking the first apartment you can find to get away from that psycho regardless of location... what would you choose??!!??

I am not looking for sympathy here, just trying to point out that choices sometimes need to be rational.
I don't want to move again - as the last move cost me enough.

The good news is I can sleep much better with a noisy street than I can with a madman (and a madwoman) living downstairs

BTW, I work 5 of those other 6 days, so the noise only bothers me for half the weekend...

I should have chosen my words a little more carefully. I do walk past shops when they are open and do not spend all my time in them. So lets open the shops on a Sunday, keep all who want them open happy. I for one would not shop on a Sunday as this is a time I prefer to choose to spend with my family. If they kept them closed for the next 10 years, it wouldn't bother me either way. As for being accused of having a profound lack of willpower... I find that deeply insulting as you do not know me in person.

I am sorry if you took that personally. I was responding to the comment that you wrote:
I stand by my assertion that this comment implies a lack of will power. You have also said that this comment does not apply to you, and I acknowledged as much here:

and here:

I take your point that whether or not shops are open on Sundays does not matter to you. Nothing wrong with that. What I have a problem with is the idea of forced leisure. You have said that is not your position, so we have no problem. I was just responding to your comment that implied as much.

OK, settled.

Could the fact that Germany's shops are closed on a Sunday be the reason why they have less divorces than the UK and US? Families (by this I mean man and wife as well, not just either with the kids) need to spend time together and if shops are open all the time, they tend not to be able to as many have to work while the other is at home looking after the kids.

Seems that some people are so stressed out about not being able to shop on Sundays, maybe they should also not let such people shop on Saturdays - as a relaxation technique

I remember when (he says getting out his pipes and slippers) shops closed on Saturday afternoons at 2pm, and on weekdays at 6pm. Actually this was not that long ago...in the late 90's.
'Kids these days never had it so good'

(Please insert Yorkshire sarcastic smiley with flat cap here).

Well in England they call it the Nanny State

Nah, the reason there are less divorces is because divorce (like so many other legal things here) is so damn complicated and expensive.
Nowt to do with the shopping hours!