Berlin – Over the past 75 years, 84 percent of bakeries have disappeared. Next blow this week: Northern German bakery chain Hansen Mürwik went bankrupt. Not an isolated case. More and more companies are experiencing difficulties.
In Germany there are currently only 8,912 bakeries with around 46,000 sales outlets. Ten years ago there were more than 12,000 businesses – every year 800 businesses are lost. Often because there is no successor or no money for investment.
Fortunately, there are also around 400 start-ups every year that revive and continue their business with innovative concepts or specializations.
And: Even though the number of branches is decreasing, the company continues to grow. Currently an average of 26.4 employees work per company. Sales jumped from 13.52 billion euros to 17.92 billion euros in the last ten years.
One thing is clear: the bread trade is in upheaval. Where once there were small family businesses, there are now centralized production facilities, often with extensive branch networks. This is the only way to win the fight for survival against supermarkets and gas stations, explains Friedemann Berg (54), managing director of the Association of German Bakery Trade Centers.
Many bakers are now more than just bakers. They expanded their business to include catering services. This has also increased the number of employees: today there are about 235,200 employees, more than in the 1950s, Berg said
The reasons for closing the bakery are varied
Berg explains: “Some bakeries closed due to age and haven’t found a replacement, some experienced financial difficulties, others gave up because the bureaucracy became too much for them.”
However, everyone is worried about the massive increase in energy and personnel costs, the tense cost situation, the high bureaucratic burden and the growing shortage of skilled workers.
Berg said: “Political interference in wage setting by interfering with the autonomy of collective bargaining has caused personnel costs to rise rapidly and will continue to rise in the future.” Prices for customers are increasing so are.
Meanwhile, videos of sourdough starter, crusty bread, and celebrating on Instagram and TikTok cake recipes great success over the years. Berg doesn’t see this as an enemy, but as an opportunity: “Ultimately, home baking raises awareness of regional traditions, culture and specialties. Crafts benefit from this because bread and baked goods are not just food, they are cultural assets.”
Critics claim that real cake making could only be done in small shops in ancient times. Berg disputes this: “Even in large companies, work is done by hand and is done according to old recipes and methods.” Producing well by hand is not a matter of size.
The company is dying. The craft is changing. Germany does not need to worry about its intangible cultural heritage. Bread has a future – just different than before.
