# Frankfurt, Germany, a few shots



## Golden Age (Dec 26, 2006)

HD said:


> I believe only berlin has the same amount - but duh... starbucks sucks - there's nothing to be proud of - there are dozens of much better coffee houses in the city.


Why then did the Germans copy the Starbucks style almost one to one? There are dozens of World Coffee, Mykke & Kokki, Frazer's, Caffetiero, Nescafe or Costa Coffee in Frankfurt, which all basically have the same idea. In Northern Germany there is also Balzac's. I agree, however, that Wacker's coffee is unrivaled in Frankfurt (especially the one in Bornheim).



HD said:


> london doesn't have dunkin donuts too - does that make it a bad city?


Au contraire, I doubt that London even has an "Australian Ice Cream Bar", which Frankfurt could easily do without. If we cross-compared the chains that Frankfurt lacks which London has, we could, however, write an entire book. BTW, Harrod's used to have a sizeable shop in the Frankfurt airport but also decided to retreat. Perhaps the only British venues besides Vodafone that are doing well in Germany are the omnipresent pubs.


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## GNU (Nov 26, 2004)

Golden Age said:


> Right on, Checker, BUT just because Germany has a thriving coffee and bakery culture it doesn't exclude American style coffee bars.



There are 50 Starbucks in Germany which isnt bad at all.
However, they are having more trouble here than in the US for example which doesnt have a traditional cafe culture.
There are also only a handfull of Starbucks in France.
I think its actually only one in Paris?
Maybe that has changed in the last time.




> Plus, have you visited the Dunkin Donuts in Berlin or Bonn?


There is a Dunkin Donuts in Friedrichstrasse to which Ive been a few years ago.




> The Starbucks are hardly symbolic of a cultural demise,


And neither is Walmart, however the german market prooved too competitive for them.



> By the looks of it you're right, but on second thought, why the hell do I have to cross the border to France (i.e., Strasbourg) to visit an awesome Virgin Megastore?


Ive been to Strasbourg a few times.
I dont know if theres a Virgin "Megastore" there.
Virgin Megastores can also be Virgin Xs or Virgin Express stores.
Plus my city is completely full with french shoppers on the weekend.
So the shopping here cant be that bad afterall.




> It just seems so random, but perhaps the management team in Germany simply did a shoddy job.


Then they could hire a new management team.


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## GNU (Nov 26, 2004)

Golden Age said:


> Why then did the Germans copy the Starbucks style almost one to one?


Isnt Starbucks a copy of european cafe stores in some way?


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## Cristovão471 (May 9, 2006)

Beautiful city, but in the first pictures the skyline looks a bit sparse (spread out)
But I bet on the ground level it's a very dense city, but needs to fill in more gaps.


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## Golden Age (Dec 26, 2006)

Checker said:


> Plus my city is completely full with french shoppers on the weekend. So the shopping here cant be that bad afterall.


That's gotta do more with "The grass is always greener on the other side" phenomenon, meaning people are simply curious how things look on the other side of the border and tend to have an idealized view of things. I lived in Bonn for 8 years and Belgian/French/Dutch shoppers flooded in over the weekends although the shopping was hardly phenomenal.

I am guilty of such "tourism shopping" myself. I find Strasbourg (which does have a Virgin Megastore) and Antwerp to be some of the two best places to shop in all of Europe and luckily they can be reached quite quickly even from Frankfurt.

BTW, the shopping selection in Frankfurt can't be all that bad. I know plenty of people from Bonn, Düsseldorf or Heidelberg that visit simply for the shopping (and then to see some of the sights).


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## Justme (Sep 11, 2002)

It must be great to live on either side of the Strasbourg/Kehl region. Bored of shopping in one country, just pop over to the other. That is something I would love.


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## Justme (Sep 11, 2002)

By the way, does anyone know when the new shopping mall of the Zeil is scheduled to actually open. I know it's been held back many times, mainly by Kaufhof who have done everything they can to squash the new competition. Is it next year, or the end of this year?


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## GNU (Nov 26, 2004)

Golden Age said:


> That's gotta do more with "The grass is always greener on the other side" phenomenon, meaning people are simply curious how things look on the other side of the border and tend to have an idealized view of things.



The shoppers that come here come on a regular basis.
They want to buy german products and theres some stuff that you cant get in France and vice versa.
There are also some german shoppers going over to France to go shopping in a french hypermarket maybe and get some typical french products.


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## GNU (Nov 26, 2004)

Justme said:


> It must be great to live on either side of the Strasbourg/Kehl region. Bored of shopping in one country, just pop over to the other. That is something I would love.


I live 50 minutes (car drive) away from France but I havent been there in the last 10 years or so. Quite strange huh? But its the same for most of my friends.
However I went through France quite a few times whilst traveling by train/plane.


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## Dallas star (Jul 6, 2006)

great shots


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## Bond James Bond (Aug 23, 2002)

Checker said:


> Isnt Starbucks a copy of european cafe stores in some way?


Howard Schultz, the CEO of Starbucks, got the idea for it from visiting cafes in Italy.


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## Blijdorp (Oct 18, 2005)

Amazings pics! Thanks!


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## Golden Age (Dec 26, 2006)

Justme said:


> By the way, does anyone know when the new shopping mall of the Zeil is scheduled to actually open.


According to the FFHV website (which was last updated in Feb) the scheduled opening of the entire complex (including the two highrises and the reconstruction of the palace) is September 2008. Also, no surprises yet for possible tenants. The upper two floors will be filled by Fitness Company's Wave Club with 5000 sqm. Should be the usual prohibitively expensive yuppie gathering (hopefully with a nice cafe). Also, "Virgin Megastore wannabe" Saturn Hansa wants two floors with 8000 sqm (nothing good can come of this). Anson's will rent three floors, which should actually be a really good addition if it's anything like the one in MTZ. The other tenants are still left to speculation. Me hopes for a big Apple Store, Castro Jeans store, a Virgin store (like the one in Berlin) and a Dunkin Donuts, basically any kind of venue that Frankfurt doesn't already have. All in all, if this structure holds what it promises, it will be a true landmark in Frankfurt's inner city development.


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## erbse (Nov 8, 2006)

Fantaboulous pictures, indeed! 

And such an interesting disussion, should find a continue soon


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## cello1974 (May 20, 2003)

Das dahinten im Hintergrund im Dunst könnte schon Mainz-Wiesbaden sein!(?) Tolle Aufnahmen! :applause:








:banana:


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## Jedrzej (Dec 25, 2005)

Kraftmeister said:


> I'm impressed. Best European skyline!!!


Nope. The best skyline in Europe is in Warsaw


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## KoolKeatz (Jan 30, 2007)

Im sorry but Warsaw hasnt the quality Frankfurt has.


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## VicFontaine (Jan 10, 2006)

Jedrzej said:


> Nope. The best skyline in Europe is in Warsaw


:lol:


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## david chanrion (Oct 4, 2002)

your photos rock !


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## cello1974 (May 20, 2003)

Jedrzej said:


> Nope. The best skyline in Europe is in Warsaw


:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: 
Yeah, right behind Moscow,London, Paris, Madrid, Frankfurt, Istanbul and Rotterdam,... in that order! :cheers:


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## tony64 (Nov 2, 2008)

unique!!!


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## HD (Sep 17, 2003)

one question, *newfvgffm* - do you have a picture like the last one which could be used for a little simulation?


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