"Kills you in the long run": Popular butchers are closing their shops

Created: 08/03/2022 15:38

By: Friedbert Holz

Giving up their business: master butchers Franz (left) and Hans Scherl.

© J.Dziemballa

Sad news for Forstinning: The Scherl butcher's shop closes in the middle of the month.

Franz and Hans Scherl want and can no longer.

The drudgery at the expense of your health is enough for you.

Forstinning – When the two brothers Franz and Hans Scherl lock the shop doors of their butcher's shop at noon on August 13th, this well-known and popular shop in the center of town will definitely be over.

"It's physically and mentally enough now," explains Franz, at 63 years old the older of the two master butchers.

Hans, who is five years younger, sees it the same way.

This eliminates an important local supply company in Forstinning, and rental apartments are to be built there in the future.

They came to Forstinning with their parents from the small town of Bruch in the Upper Palatinate in 1966, because their father, who was also a butcher, wanted to buy his own business in his home country.

When this wish could not be fulfilled there, however, he found the building opposite the church, which also houses a hairdresser's shop, as an alternative.

"At that time there was also a small inn here," the brothers remember, "but only for a few guests until around 1996".

Metzgerei Scherl closes: "It's physically and mentally enough now"

Both grew up locally, went to school and had to help out in their parents' business from an early age.

"I've been standing in rubber boots for a good 50 years now, and it left its mark on my feet," says Franz Scherl, describing a typical occupational syndrome.

On January 1, 1988, the brothers took over the butcher's shop from their father and founded a civil law partnership (GbR).

“Before that we were in the Bundeswehr, learned at various places in Upper Bavaria and finally graduated as master craftsmen and business economists.

Most recently, we had seven employees here in the company, two of them part-time.

But not everyone was preserved during the pandemic period, for example one saleswoman did not want to work with a mask, ”explain the two.

As nice as independence is, it is also hard, says Hans Scherl: “We usually had a seven-day week here, with at least 70 hours of work, which wears you down in the long run.

It was particularly tough during the lockdown, sometimes we had even more work to do, and the whole system had to be kept running."

Popular butcher shop is closing: Old enough to think about quitting

Now, they both say, they have reached a certain age where the thought of retiring is definitely appropriate.

And so they decided last year to draw a line in mid-August.

This date resulted primarily from the various notice periods for their employees.

The situation on the market also reinforced her decision not to continue.

“As trained butchers, we aim to deliver good goods to our customers.

This is becoming more and more difficult these days because some prefer to buy cheaper from discounters, sometimes without considering the quality that is not always comparable.

We cannot parry the prices that are being asked there: For example, for the price of a marinated pork neck steak, packaged ready for the customer to grill, we don’t even get our basic meat, the marinade hasn’t even been taken into account,” calculates Franz Scherl, frustrated before.

Unfortunately, both complain, everything is currently only about the price.

They understand that inflation and higher energy costs mean that more and more customers are unable to spend less on groceries.

"But even before these new problems, many people didn't attach much importance to good meat - we Germans, despite high purchasing power, are at the bottom of the table in Europe when it comes to spending on food in general."

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Butcher Scherl closes: hairdresser in the house remains

They know the community would like to keep them and their business local.

But they are pursuing a different idea, wanting to offer some rental apartments in their then converted house, once permits are available.

"But the hairdressing business will remain," explains Franz Scherl, "and my son Alexander, now 26 years old and also a butcher, will work elsewhere."

But he himself is looking forward to his free time.

"Until now," adds his brother Hans, "we still had to work a few days after a three-week shutdown so that we didn't shut everything down.

And shortly before the reopening everything had to be prepared for the sale again”.

Now, however, treat your battered legs to either a rest or a relaxing hike.

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