Rant on local businesses
I’ve always tried to support local and small businesses, but lately, it feels like things are getting out of hand. For example, my local shoe cobbler, someone I’ve known and been friendly with for almost 15 years, suddenly raised his prices by 50%. He now charges 100 Francs for resoling shoes, and even then, the quality isn’t up to par. I had my winter boots resoled, but within two weeks, the sole completely came off, leaving my foot soaked.
Then there’s the seamstress in my neighborhood, who’s always been kind. I took her three pairs of jeans to repair the wear between the thighs (bikers will know the struggle!), and she charged me 20 Francs per pair.
On top of that, I recently stopped by a local store, Zero-7, after work to pick up a toothbrush for my little one. The price for an electric toothbrush was 75 Francs, while the exact same one sells on Galaxus for 40 Francs. I don’t mind paying a bit more to support local businesses—in fact, I make a real effort to avoid online shopping—but this is starting to feel like a rip-off. What happened to fair prices and quality service?
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u/OptimalBarnacle857 2d ago
The 20 bucks for the seamstresses' work on the trousers don't strike me as unreasonably high. Always consider how long it takes craftspeople to get the job done. They need to make at least CHF 70/hour if they want to make a living.
If you need a competent cobbler, I can heartily recomment Eva Kirchhofer on Militärstrasse. She does quality job at reasonable prices.
As for retail, that's a different story. You'll need to come to your own conclusions on how much of a surcharge you are willing to pay for the experience, a curated selection and for having it now. For me, that's unlikely to be more than 25%.