2020! What can we say? A heck of a year! It’s only May. We have flirted with the idea of making more video content. Off and on over the years we produced features covering fashion, film festivals, and other events.
Many events have cancelled until further notice. When an opportunity knocks, open the door. Black and Paper presents is now a reality.
Keep an eye here.
Black and Paper coverage from the capital.
Berlin retail is struggling to get shoppers in stores. On Thursday the place was empty. Hopefully, things will get better once restaurants reopen.
Director Paul Verhoeven made a certain film that has outlived the most savage reviews. Why? A bad film we love.
Stay Tuned for the next Chat Cinema Podcast.
Before the lockdown many fashion magazines were under pressure. Are they relevant during an ongoing pandemic? As consumers face stark choices, the existence of many publications looks uncertain. Editions cut. Titles closed. Selling bling is out of style.
Check out our video on the matter.
The big department stores reopened on Saturday. The early turn out, light. I observed curiosity, people looking around, but no shopping. It is still too early to make a verdict. Perhaps, shoppers will return in the future. But in the New Normal large shops feel like dinosaurs. A species from a bygone era.
Still a lack of shoppers at local malls and stores. The air of uncertainty continues to affect buyers after reopening 8 days ago.
The “New Norma”l is not normal. Berlin is feeling the psychological impact of the Coronavirus. Although the German capital has not been as hard hit compared to other regions of the country, the effects cut across the city.
Stores have opened, yet people continue to stay away. The retail experience is almost a prozac nightmare. Cordoned off areas of stores, lines to enter, no dressing rooms, mandatory wearing of face masks.
Berlin partially lifted the lockdown. On Saturday I decided to go go to the KuDamm, the city’s main shopping area, to see the results of the reopening. The department store KaDeWe had it fist day of sale on the 25th. I ventured in, curious. Shopping in the “New Normal” written for an episode of “Black Mirror”. As with other stores I checked last week, people stayed away.
The city has eased the lockdown but shoppers are staying away from malls. Demand has dissolved. The “New Normal” for the short term means less consumption.
What makes it hard to buy? The constant reminders of the Coronavirus. A Mood killer!
Berlin partially lifted the lockdown form the Coronavirus Crisis. Stores up to 800 meters may open. But the limits are as follows: A limited number of people allowed for 20 meters. Sounds easy, but Soviet Union 1975, people standing in line waiting to get in a store.
I wanted to see it for myself. As one of the first major cities to reopen, the German capital could represent life with Covid-19. A living petri dish of the “New Normal”.
Shopping experience in a Post Lockdown world means distance.
I went to a denim shop in the city center for a pair of jeans. The sales person, a friend, was sitting outside as I came up. I entered the store with a mask in my hand, but he wearing his. There was tape on the floor to mark the 2 meter space in front of sales desk. Funny, the store felt a bit bare. I asked what happened. The previous collection was sent back to the head office. It did not sell. The carry over pieces are available until the Spring looks arrive.
I asked about business. A mixed reaction. He preferred people stay at home, not window shop. Better to call ahead for a pair of pants. It is safer. But the lack of buyers concerned him. If the lack of customers continued he feared the store would close in a matter of months. I got a pair of new jeans for the spring.
I walked around the shopping area, all the boutique shops looked empty. A street once filled with people, tumble weeds could have rolled across. A few stores marked down items at 70%. Few takers.
A bit strange walking into a sore filled with salespeople wearing masks and warning signs of a virus. Even asking a staff member 2 meters aways felt awkward. Next time I think Whats App.
The Mitte mega mall, Alex, had more employees than customers. To enter, shoppers have to go through line control. Once shopping was about connivence, now, drudgery. Opened for business but no shows. The public stayed away on the first opened day after 5 weeks in lockdown.
Stay Tuned for more.