ADEG in Teufenbach

Town Loses Post Office, Tobacco Shop, and Grocery Store All at Once

Gernot Flanzer will open the doors of his shop for the last time on Saturday.(Bild: Kevin Geissler)

Starting Saturday, the Styrian town of Teufenbach will be without local retailers. Along with the grocery store, the post office partner and tobacco shop will also disappear. The mayor is confident that a successor will be found.

Local shops in rural areas have now become a rarity in Styria as well. More and more small stores are closing their doors—often because the businesses are no longer profitable from an economic standpoint. This fate is now also befalling the last corner store in Teufenbach (Murau district).

This Saturday will be the last chance to shop at the local Adeg for the time being. But owner Gernot Glanzer did not take this decision lightly: “I enjoyed doing this; it was fun for me, but economically, the business is simply no longer profitable.”

Necessary investments too high
He had already decided last fall to close the store. The necessary investments were no longer feasible: “The refrigeration units are already so weak; they urgently needed to be replaced,” says Glanzer.

I enjoy running the store; I’ve loved doing it. But from an economic standpoint, it’s no longer profitable.

Gernot Glanzer

Instead, he is now focusing entirely on the catering service he runs on the side: “I took that over from my predecessor together with ADEG and revamped it. I come from the restaurant industry, after all. It didn’t take long before the catering business kept the store afloat.”

Much to the chagrin of Teufenbach residents, the local grocery store’s closure also means the loss of the associated postal partner and the tobacco shop: “Customers are naturally sad to see them go,” says Glanzer.

Municipality steps in with shopping trips
But if Mayor Gottfried Sperl (FPÖ) has his way, this won’t last long: “As a municipality, we’re working hard to find a successor, and there are already interested parties.” Until the grocery store reopens, however, the municipality is stepping in. Twice a week, shopping trips to the nearest market are organized for Teufenbach residents who aren’t mobile.