Andreas Neuhaus loves his hometown Brühl and would probably be a good city guide who could tell an anecdote about every stone. Anyone who only knows the city that borders Cologne from Phantasialand will gain a whole new appreciation for the town of 46,000 residents in the portrait published in this issue of the Winterscheid shoe store run by Neuhaus. The dealer takes you on the way to the new town hall (which “even looks good”), to the neighboring fashion retailer and to the former department store, which is currently increasing frequency in the area again under the Sinn flag. It is a well-stocked small town that functions despite some vacancies.
What is important, especially for a small town, are the people who actively work to maintain it. Schuhhaus Winterscheid is a traditional location that has existed for 76 years and could have just as easily closed as many traditional shops in other cities. Neuhaus took over the shop from the retiring owner in order to keep the name alive, as he says. He does this by keeping the business itself fresh. The motivated employees redesign the store every few weeks and he himself visits many trade fairs to look for new and inspiring styles. And while many dealers complain that they can hardly find anything interesting at trade fairs, Neuhaus simply says that he always finds something. There’s only one thing he doesn’t want in his shop: boredom.
In this way, Neuhaus can enhance the surrounding area with its inspiring shop, which in turn can benefit the other retailers and thereby increase the quality of stay in the entire place. The owner, who actually comes from sales and only ran a small shop on the side before taking over the shoe store, does not preserve the tradition for its own sake, but rather develops the business further and adapts it to the times. This is the only way to create something that is sustainable in the long term, instead of letting something exist for a long time out of nostalgia. And ideally, at some point someone will be found to take over the shoe store and then adapt it to the times again.
