Even before its first birthday, the REWE store at Anger 7 in Erfurt received a coveted award - as "Store of the Year" in the Food category, honoured by the German Retail Association.
"From the planning and construction to our daily work since the opening last summer, everyone involved in Anger 7 has put their heart and soul into the store and paid great attention to detail. Our customers keep telling me how beautiful the shop has become," says a delighted Christian Friebe, a REWE retailer from Erfurt.
REWE salesman Christian Friebe I Photos: Paul-Philipp Braun
The 35-year-old employs more than 60 people in his supermarket, which opened in June 2022, and offers around 20,000 items. But it's not just the customers who are delighted - experts also share the high opinion: the REWE supermarket won the "Stores of the Year" award in the food category, presented by the German Retail Association (HDE).
Monument protection meets modernity
Central location: The REWE store blends harmoniously into Erfurt's established cityscape
In the Erfurt supermarket, heritage protection meets modernity. The shop extends over several parts of the building, including a historic granary dating back to 1590 and a new building completed last year. The "Stores of the Year" jury praised the unique, central location and in particular the architectural adaptation to the small-scale building structure. A wide variety of uses were combined in the complex in Erfurt city centre: There is an underground car park with around 120 parking spaces beneath the 2,600 square metre supermarket, a bakery on the ground floor and a medical centre, day care and age-appropriate Caritas flats with a roof garden on the upper floors.
The building structure presented a challenge, but in the end the combination of tradition and modernity was convincing
The vast majority of customers come to the REWE supermarket on foot or by bike. "We are in the heart of the city and very easy to reach, especially for the neighbours from the surrounding flats," says Christian Friebe.
Simply scan your purchase yourself
In addition to the structural symbiosis of old and new, the REWE supermarket impressed the jury with its freshness concept and innovative shopping solutions. There is a salad bar, service counters with cheese, sausage and meat, a sushi bar and a bistro with more than 20 seats. Thanks to Scan&Go, customers can scan their purchases directly at the shelf themselves.
A successful symbiosis: Old meets new and both on a sumptuous food offer
"They don't have to put their purchases on the conveyor belt again at the end of the day, they can pay with just a few clicks at the express checkout," explains store manager Friebe, who also offers a pick-up service. "Customers can order their groceries online and pick them up at a time of their choice. For many, this is a real relief."
The concept has obviously been well received, as the young store impresses with the highest number of customers in Thuringia. While other REWE stores have an average of around 10,000 purchases per week, the Anger has almost 33,000.
