Winterthur's old town in transition Store exodus in Winterthur's old town - what's behind it
After more than two decades, the Ecla shoe store in Winterthur is closing. This is not the first closure in recent months. The old town is already facing major challenges.
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- The Winterthur shoe store Ecla is closing after more than 20 years.
- The fashion chain Nile is taking over the store, while Winterthur's Old Town is struggling with business closures in general.
- The city of Winterthur suspects that the popularity of online retail is a possible reason for the closures.
- The city sees the structural change as a challenge, but also as an opportunity for new concepts such as pop-up stores and hybrid usage models.
A small piece of Winterthur's history is coming to an end: after more than two decades, the Ecla shoe store on Marktgasse is closing its doors for good at the end of March. Owners Edwin Hotz and Claudia Wehren are taking their well-deserved retirement - albeit with a heavy heart, as the "Landbote" writes.
"We are retiring," says Hotz. But they were unable to find a successor. Economic difficulties? Not a chance! "Of course we struggled a bit," he admits, but business is still going well. The niche: fine footwear in the upper segment. Customers even came from French-speaking Switzerland.
There is already a new tenant: the clothing chain Nile, which already has two branches in Winterthur, is taking over the store. However, this is not a store extension - the Nile store "Second Season" is moving from Marktgasse 60 a few meters away to number 48, where it will be renovated before the move takes place at the beginning of May.
City of Winterthur: online retail is the competition for stores
But this is not the first store to close in Winterthur's old town. In recent months, four stores in the old town have had to close.
The city of Winterthur explains: "Winterthur's old town, like comparable places - but also like shopping centers, for example - is affected by the megatrend of online shopping, among other things."
The digital transformation is leading to an ongoing structural change that cannot be stopped. Nevertheless, the old town still has a large number of different stores with a diverse range of products. "Winterthur's old town will continue to be an attractive place in the future," it continues. However, it can be assumed that the old town could increasingly develop into a meeting, cultural and event location in the future. This development can already be observed today.
Structural change should offer new opportunities
It's not quite that simple. "This structural change is undoubtedly a major challenge for all property owners, store owners, the City-Vereinigung Junge Altstadt and the city of Winterthur."
However, the structural change also offers opportunities, for example for increased use of store premises by pop-ups or by craftspeople. New formats are also in demand, such as stores as pick-up stations for goods ordered online with an experience character, which also serve as post boxes, digital kiosks, event spaces and pop-up stores.
Are the rents too high for the stores?
There are several reasons for the closures and loss of stores in the old town. Are the rents to blame for the closures?
The city of Winterthur cannot make any statements about the rents of the stores. It says: "We don't collect any data on this. In addition, the premises are privately owned. The City-Vereinigung Junge Altstadt Genossenschaft is responsible for the location marketing of Winterthur's old town and neighboring areas and represents the common interests of its approximately 250 members from retail, gastronomy, services and landowners."
