Many businesses and companies were severely affected by the corona crisis. The losses from closings in Germany are almost incalculable. Now, however, the measures are slowly being relaxed and the shops are opening again. Should politics now allow more open Sundays in Germany?
This week, individual shops were allowed to reopen as the measures against the spread of the coronavirus eased. Many shops have used the opportunity to open, others are in the starting blocks and some have to shrink for financial reasons. However, economic hardship continues to be great. It is now being discussed whether the possibility of a Sunday shopping could help to limit the financial losses of the shops a little. Because despite the reopening of many shops, the trade in the shops is only slowly starting up again. Many Germans are still skeptical whether the risk of infection has really decreased significantly. Accordingly, shopping has not come first.
This caution of the citizens can be seen in the sales figures for the first few days after the shutdown. “Where many stores were allowed to reopen on Monday, sales remained rather low compared to the times before Corona,” explains the managing director of the German Trade Association (HDE), Stefan Genth. “The cause is certainly the overall very bad consumer mood. People are afraid for their jobs or are already on short-time work, ”continues Genth. As the week-long closings of stores have led to a sharp decline in revenues, consideration is already being given to how these can be compensated for in the future. There are now increasing demands for new rules for Sunday opening times. “In order to equalize the flow of customers, I would like flexibility on Sundays, limited to the end of January next year,” said Michael Busch, head of the Talia book chain, to the newspapers of the Funke media group. “In this way, the retail trade could bring back some of the lost sales,” Busch is certain.
It is not yet possible to calculate whether and how much of the losses could be compensated for with the permission to open on Sundays. But it is certainly an opportunity for the stores that do not specialize in the sale of groceries that are worth considering. Many companies are therefore hoping for an exemption for the rest of the year. Only the question of how to use this possibility without overstressing the employees of these companies has yet to be discussed in detail.
