It may happen that in the near future retailers change their opening hours: the reason is most often a lack of staff due to illness or annual leave. But already in September, the first supermarket chain requested shorter store opening hours. Is this a new trend?

As reported by “Lebensmittel Zeitung”, the general director of the supermarket chain Tegut, Thomas Gutberlet, recently wrote to state authorities in favor of shorter store opening hours.

“In the short term, the reduction would help save energy. In the long term, it would make retail job profiles more attractive again,” director Thomas Gutberlet told “Lebensmittel Zeitung”.

The head of Tegut sees the regulations in Bavaria as a model. In the southern federal state, stores close at 8 p.m.

“Basically, it is about bringing the topic of store opening hours back into the conversation and renegotiating with the public,” Gutberlet told “Lebensmittel Zeitung”.

According to its own statements, Tegut operates more than 300 supermarkets in six federal states.

For Lidl and Rewe, this idea is currently not an option, reports “karlsruhe-insider.de”. In response to journalists’ inquiries, they said that opening hours are currently based on customer requirements, reports Fenix Magazin.

Source: poslovni.hr