Germany, shopping paradise. Nothing is missing here: from cheap products to haute couture, from antiques to the latest innovations, from international products to quintessentially German. And you can always find the goods that you need, and in surprisingly cheap stores. The article will help with information about the most interesting places where you can do the best shopping in Germany.
To Germany for shopping
When going on a shopping tour, it is better to go to the big cities of Germany with large shopping centers, where sales are held more often. The largest shopping center in Berlin is LP12 - Mall of Berlin. It was recently opened in 2014. For those who prefer to shop by walking down the street, there are several streets with shops dedicated exclusively to shopping in Berlin. Friedrichstraße is an example of a large shopping center in the city. It has many clothing stores such as Zara, Espirit, H&M, AllSaints, shoe stores, jewelry stores.
ManyThere are many great shopping shops for clothes and shoes in Mitte, around Alte Schonhauser Strasse and Neu Schonhauser Strasse, Muntzstrasse and Rosenthaler Strasse. These stores have things that men will love and women will love.
You will always find what you are looking for on the shopping streets: Königsallee in Düsseldorf, Mönckebergstraße in Hamburg or Kaufinger Strasse in Munich. By the way, Munich is considered the second shopping center in Germany, and Düsseldorf is the unofficial fashion center in Europe, competing with Milan and Paris. In some cities, a tour of the historic center is also a good opportunity for shopping in malls.
Outlets in Germany
There are also shops in German cities, located far from the main highways. These are basically outlets. This type of shopping in Germany was discovered by tourists from Russia. Goods in such stores are both German and international at low prices. But in any case, the priority of trade in Germany is to satisfy all, from small to large, wishes of buyers.
During the winter shopping in Germany, you can find goods with very big discounts. Sales in the country start earlier than in other European ones. The lowest prices for goods are usually in mid-January (discounts up to 90%). But sometimes stores announce a sale at their own discretion. That is, no matter what time tourists come to the clothing market in Berlin, they will definitely get to some sales.
Features of outlets in Germany
In the understanding of sophisticated buyers, "outlet" is equivalent to the concept of "stock" or "discounts". Why are such stores interesting for shopping lovers? They already initially have a price 30-40% lower than the retail price of other German stores. Goods in these stores get in large quantities at the borders of the seasons, when the collections of clothes, shoes and accessories are updated. That is, what is not sold in the season, falls into the outlet. Usually this fact does not bother buyers - lovers of the classics. Classic clothes without pronounced trends in a particular style in fashion can last a long time.
But you can get good things in ordinary stores, shopping in Germany during the sales season, which happens twice a year: in July and January. The sales season lasts for a month. In summer, all clothes and shoes that were not sold by the summer are sold, and in winter - what is left of winter goods.
The most famous outlet in Germany is located in Munich and is a huge array of 110 boutiques - this is the outlet "Ingolstadt". It is very popular among tourists from Poland, the Czech Republic, Russia. Also, tourists who come to Berlin can visit the most famous Berlin McArthurGlen outlet in the city. This is an outlet department store. For women, Versace is one of the most colorful pieces in past collections.
Shopping in Bayreuth
In Germany there is a beautiful city built in the Baroque style - Bayreuth. As the Germans themselves say - a city of shopping. Those who came on a tour for goods canwalk along Bayroth's attractive pedestrian zone, admire its sights, visit pavement cafes and speci alty shops.
On Maximilianstraße in the city center there are more than 400 of these shops, ready to offer tourists a huge range of goods. From the city center there are side streets where small boutiques with goods of famous fashion companies are located.
The city offers tourists a whole range of shopping opportunities. Including in 80 specialized stores of the Rotmain shopping center (Rotmain) - goods for every taste.
Düsseldorf
The German city of Düsseldorf is considered the unofficial capital of fashion. Here on the Royal Alley (Konigsallee) the most fashionable clothes are sold. If you don’t buy, then you can at least admire samples of chic clothes and shoes in the windows. The German fashion capital concentrates stores in a few blocks, and shop windows dictate the trends for each season, bringing together leading international fashion brands from Hermès to Lagerfeld.
And you can do shopping by visiting clothing factories, where everything is sold without extra charges. At least this is what German dandies and fashionistas do, purchasing goods from fresh collections at reasonable prices. You can follow their example. If you want to buy goods even cheaper, you need to go to the suburb of Dusseldorf - Rattingham. Outlets in the suburbs are open from Monday to Saturday from 10 am to 6 pm. Having visited several stocksuburban shops such as Benetton, Esprit, S'Oliver and Tom Tailor, you're sure to find what you're looking for. In this case, it will be possible to consider that the shopping has taken place.
Weiden
An old Bavarian town where you can relax, walk along its streets, admire the sights and, of course, make a pleasant shopping experience. Weiden in Germany is considered one of the cities where you can buy goods of excellent quality at affordable prices. Behind the beautiful renaissance façades and in the buildings listed, there are many shops that invite you to stroll and shop in the historic old town of Weiden. Shops and boutiques stock casual and haute couture clothing.
Tourists who went shopping in Weiden (Germany) express their satisfaction with the variety of goods and the high level of service in their reviews of the trip.
For those who are going to Germany for the first time to make purchases, tourists experienced in this craft give the following advice:
- In Germany, there is Tax Free - a VAT refund system when passing customs control. The refund amount is 10-20% of the value of the goods.
- To receive a VAT refund on the exported goods, you must provide a check received from the seller - Global Refund at the customs point. All product tags must also be retained.
- A mandatory condition for the return of money on the product: its value must be from 25 euros or more.
What is good about shopping inChemnitz (Germany)?
Chemnitz (formerly Karl-Marx-Stadt) is a small German city that provides shopping services to numerous tourists. The culmination of every trip to Chemnitz is the discovery of the city as a one-stop shopping paradise. In small towns in Germany, retail outlets are concentrated in the central square. It is the center of seasonal sales and fairs. So in Chemnitz, the Rathaus-Passage is located near the city hall. It sells clothes of different sizes, including large ones. Sporting goods here.
In addition, there are Innere Klosterstrasse and Rosenhof pedestrian streets in Chemnitz, along the entire length of which there are shops.
In the Roter Turm gallery of Chemnitz, the H&M store offers quality clothing with a wide selection of world brands in different price categories for all family members. The store usually stocks models for different figures, a wide selection of timeless classics, sportswear, as well as lingerie and accessories.
Outlets in Chemnitz
Outside the city is the famous "Chemnitz Center", more than 80 shops are open to visitors from Monday to Saturday from 10 am to 8 pm. Deproc Freizeitartikel GmbH is a stock store for Deproc sportswear. In addition to clothing, the store offers sports equipment and backpacks. Designer items with discounts up to 70% can be found at Bruno Banani Outlet. In addition, it sells homewear, lingerie and beachwear, as well as all kinds of accessories.
Eat fora large Cars exclusive GmbH outlet for the sale of new and used cars from German and global manufacturers.
Summing up
It is impossible to say unequivocally where shopping in Germany is better. Of the small cities in Germany, the most famous for their shopping are the cities of Chemnitz and Weiden, which were discussed in the article. The range of goods is large and of good quality. The advantages of shopping in Germany include the tax-free system, which helps to save on VAT refunds. Another point: on a shopping tour, shopping tourists recommend going during the season of the biggest discounts, when the goods are still available, and the discounts are already 50%. When discounts go through the roof, the right products may not be available.
And yet, reviews about shopping in Germany are different. Many in the outlets were not able to find clothes for themselves, as usually the stock stores have a narrow size range. All running sizes sold out in the season, remained either very small or very large. May be lucky for those tourists who love artsy design. The expression "how lucky" is quite suitable for shopping in any city. Someone comes from a tourist trip with bags full of new clothes, and someone grumbles that he wasted his time. But most of the tourists are mostly satisfied with their shopping tour.
