When there were still aprons: the Isar department store opened 50 years ago
Created: 05.10.2022, 20:00
Good team: Frederik Holthaus with Felicitas Hübner, who has been working in the Isar department store for 50 years, right from the start.
You know the friendly little woman from the stationery department.
© Sabine Hermsdorf-Hiss
Times have changed, but the Isar department store has remained: it has been on Egerlandstraße in Geretsried for 50 years.
Owner Frederik Holthaus in an interview.
Geretsried – The Geretsrieder Isar department store is 50 years old these days.
On September 28, 1972, the Grünwald entrepreneur Ernst-Otto Holthaus, who had owned the Isar department store in Wolfratshausen since 1966, opened the branch.
True to the motto "Retail is change", the business has repeatedly adapted to the circumstances over the years, has changed the range and set different priorities.
In the beginning, customers got everything from fresh cut flowers, aprons, vinyl records and perfume to family clothing, camping gear and pet food to bicycles and car accessories.
The supply was gradually reduced.
Today you can find underwear and stockings, jewelery and leather goods, women's and men's fashion, household goods, toys, decorative items,
stationery and luggage.
Our employee Tanja Lühr spoke to owner Frederik Holthaus about five decades of Isar department stores.
Mr. Holthaus, there are old photos in the stairwell. In one of them you are standing with one of your two sisters next to your father in the newly opened shop. What childhood memories do you have of the Geretsrieder Isar department store?
Frederik Holthaus:
I was nine when it opened.
1972 was an exciting year for me because of the Olympics in Munich.
But as a boy, I also followed the construction of the branch in Geretsried with interest.
At the time, I really wanted to be an excavator operator.
We children already knew the Wolfratshausen Isar department store.
What I liked most about Geretsried was the fenced-off children's play area, where you could ride slide cars - the forerunners of bobby cars - and play with the train or with dolls while the parents shopped in peace.
I also loved the candy department.
You could fill a bag with gummy bears and sweets from different chutes.
I always grabbed something in passing.
Geretsried: Frederik Holthaus over 50 years Isar department store
When did your career aspirations change from an excavator operator to a businessman?
Holthaus:
From the age of about 15 I helped with the delivery of goods in Wolfratshausen.
The goods for both department stores came by train.
I helped with sorting and labeling, shredded the boxes and distributed the things to the different departments.
I really enjoyed that.
In the 1980s I decided to learn my father's trade.
My sisters weren't interested in taking over his department stores.
After high school and military service, I studied business administration, worked in the USA for a year and then three years at Kaufring in Düsseldorf before I started the family business here.
In 1995 your father gave you the management of both houses. Even then, they were no longer all-round suppliers.
Holthaus:
In the 1970s and 1980s, it was common for department stores to have a wide but flat range.
That means there was everything, but only one or two brands of each item.
In the 1990s, there was a change towards a deeper range.
Customers had become more demanding and wanted more choice in a particular product.
The times when it was enough to line up 20 bikes in a row were over.
People went to specialist shops for this.
For example, we now offer a wide range of women's fashion, from leisure wear to suits or dresses for festive occasions.
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Do you have a favorite department?
Holthaus:
I love all departments!
Look here, these retro tin cans were brought back by my buyers.
Aren't they original?
I'm happy every day when I go through the house and see what's new.
How can the classic department store still function today?
Holthaus:
Good question.
I have to digress a bit for that.
A department store that is run with love and care has several advantages over specialist retailers or online retailers.
It is a place where the customer not only meets his needs.
It's a place of inspiration.
You often go out without wanting to buy anything in particular.
You might be looking for a warm sweater or jacket because it's getting cold outside, or a gift for a friend.
On the internet, people tend to search for something very specific.
Second, a department store is a place of communication.
In a small town like Geretsried, you meet people you know.
This is not only important for the elderly.
But the most important thing in the house are my employees.
If the customer wishes, they will be happy to advise him.
But he can also browse and try on clothes to his heart's content without being bothered by a saleswoman and without feeling obliged to buy anything.
This is different from the specialty store.
Construction site, corona pandemic and war: Isar department store is always facing challenges
In Geretsried you already had to live with two construction sites on your doorstep, one of which still exists. You also had losses for two years due to the corona pandemic. How do you get through such crises?
Holthaus:
We retailers were all enthusiastic about the first redesign of the Egerlandstraße in 2005 by the city planner Eberhard von Angerer.
The road was then narrowed from four to two lanes.
More common areas were created in front of the shops and more parking spaces.
The work went faster than this time.
Since 2017, we dealers have been suffering massively from the major construction site at Karl-Lederer-Platz and now Egerlandstrasse.
Our regular customers from Wolfratshausen come less because they were used to simply turning left at the town hall and finding a parking space in front of the front door.
When everything is finished, we will have a central underground car park in Geretsried, which I support, but the areas in front of our shops on Egerlandstrasse will be as small as they were before 2005. The pandemic has given us a hard time.
Luckily I received Bridging Aid III in 2020 and 2021.
In addition, I was frugal.
You also have to keep up with the times: we have been advertising on social media channels for a number of years, which my colleague Maria Fagner does extremely well.
We get a lot of positive feedback.
I would like to thank our regular customers who have remained loyal to us in difficult times.
Are you currently feeling the effects of the war? Do people save on consumer goods such as clothing or household appliances?
Holthaus:
Yes, there are customers who tell me that they have already received their advance payment notices for electricity and gas and therefore have to tighten their belts.
We will certainly feel this even more strongly in the coming months.
Are you still optimistic about the future?
Holthaus:
Definitely.
I'm looking forward to the end of the construction site and the settlement of Aldi and the move of Rossmann.
So the Isar department store will remain in Geretsried for a while, ideally under your leadership?
Holthaus:
I don't intend to retire anytime soon.
My father worked until he was 71 - let's see how long I can do it (laughs).
My three daughters are only three, eight and ten.
At that age, they still want to be a kindergarten teacher, teacher or veterinarian.
But that can change – as you can see from my example.
Birthday program
The Isar department store is celebrating its milestone birthday from Thursday, October 6th, with a colorful programme.
Customers can take part in a window lottery.
The task is to find out how many times the number 50 has hidden in the three shop windows.
Customers can count and win vouchers until October 22nd.
Senior boss Otto-Ernst Holthaus will cut the birthday cake at 11 a.m. on Saturday, October 8th.
After that there will be coffee and cake for everyone.
The shop will be open from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Sunday, October 9th.
From October 9th to 15th there is a 15 percent discount on everything except books, stamps and tobacco products.
There will be a raffle for redeemed bonus cards on Sunday, October 9th and Saturday, October 15th.
The employees will be distributing chocolate kisses as a small, sweet thank you from Wednesday, October 12th to Friday, October 14th.
On October 15, the anniversary days end with Prosecco and Aperol.
A colorful program with face painting, a wheel of fortune and a painting competition awaits the children on the first floor.
A photo exhibition in the stairwell and the film "50 Years of the Isar Department Store" are reminiscent of the beginnings.
The history of the house
In 1966, the Grünwald merchant Otto-Ernst Holthaus opened the Isar department store in Wolfratshausen.
The Capitol cinema was located in today's Isar department store on Egerlandstraße in Geretsried until 1968.
In 1971 Hans Fahr acquired the building.
He rented it to Ernst-Otto Holthaus on the condition that he had it thoroughly renovated.
Holthaus added two floors to the ground floor.
The opening took place on September 28, 1972.
The evening before, the Holthaus family had already celebrated together with the workforce and numerous guests of honor, including Mayor Heinz Schneider.
The rush of customers on September 28th was almost unbearable;
the security and locking company had to let people in in batches.
One attraction was the first escalator in Geretsried and in the district.
It was removed again in 2014.
In 1990 the house was given a special touch by a gift from the French twin town of Chamalières: the artist Slobo Jevtic painted the entire south facade with a view of Chamalières.
In 1995 Frederik Holthaus took over both department stores from his father.
He had to close the one in Wolfratshausen in 2012 because the rental costs were too high.
Tanya Lühr
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