The golden center in retail has lost shine – Diepresse.com
Medium -sized companies in the shopping streets in Vienna struggles between luxury shops and discounters. How to position yourself.
In the 1st Vienna district, the noble brands of the world play luxury tetris, on the other shopping streets the discounters now pay maximum prices to be represented in the good frequency locations. And in between? The online trade is part of the sharpest competition. And make it difficult for the mid-segment to be successful in the middle of the real estate and other prizes. « The trend is clearly towards luxury or discount, the middle is currently not easy, » confirms Franziska Patay, Senior Consultant in the retail team of EHL.
In order to be successful, the middle must therefore find new ways « to bring customers into the area ». For example, offer what discounters do not have: « There is zero atmosphere and no advice », which is why medium-sized companies should concentrate more on experiences: « For example, by a fashion store also takes a café with him, which some already do. Or more entertainment creates: with music, smells or events, » says Patay.
Events bring sales
A good example is the new Cupra garages at Albertina, who organize events in her showroom and rely on an atmosphere with LED streams and large sound technology. However, it does not always have to be the big staging, even relatively modest events can do a lot, such as Roman Schmatzer, Head of Investment at Re/Max First, emphasizes: « The Lugner City is often smiled at, but there you get a clown every week, and the parents therefore also come with their children from the 22nd district. » What leads to impressive numbers: « The Magenta shop there is the strongest in sales in all of Austria; the Billa plus the second strongest, right after the Gernsgross on Mariahilfer Straße. »
« SMEs can no longer afford locations such as the ditch and the Kohlmarkt. »
Franziska Patay
Senior Consultant Retail Ehl
Good locations for medium -sized companies
In addition to good concepts, it is about the situation. « SMEs can no longer afford locations such as the ditch and the Kohlmarkt, where around 600 euros per square meter must be paid a month, » says Patay. In this segment, prices of around 100 or 150 euros are more justifiable. The broker sees good locations for the qualitative middle class in Neubaugasse, on Währinger Straße, in the area of Hietzinger Hauptstraße or in the first on Rotenturmstrasse.
Although some of the prices can already differ according to the house: a good example of this is Mariahilfer Straße, where it was usually a bit cheaper towards the Westbahnhof, but the construction site at Lamarr is currently temporarily pressing the prices a little.
The Viennese business agency wants to avoid vacancies in the shopping streets, with targeted grants, especially for the domestic retail middle class. « An example is the Grätzelinitiative Ottakring, where we have set ourselves the goal of creating new offers around the Ottakringer brewery, » says company spokeswoman Uschi Kainz. « Since 2023, 72 projects that were supported with 736,000 euros have been implemented by a consulting offensive and grants. »
Projects of shopping streets
The “Wiener Business Quarters” project celebrated its start in mid-May with the “Long Night of Praterstrasse”: six project areas around shopping streets such as Prater or Favoritenstrasse are to be upgraded. For this purpose, workshops with business and residents were organized in order to collect needs and to initiate measures. The project has been designed for three years and has been running since autumn 2023.
With 1.5 million euros, the further development of six areas is funded, which the business agency has identified as a local center with great potential for sustainable development of local supply. This also includes the Simmeringer, Hernalser and Döblinger Hauptstraße and the center of Floridsdorf. The needs in the quarters were recorded in neighborhood workshops from 2024. Representatives from trade, gastro, services, local associations and cultural initiatives put together the heads for ideas and implementation plans that are supposed to develop their Grätzel.
As important as the location, atmosphere and advice are, if the quality does not fit, the greatest project does not help the middle class, Patay emphasizes: « Because when I buy something in high-quality retail, which is just as quickly broken as the discount goods, the concept cannot work. »
