Young, courageous and with female strength into the future: As the wife of Simon Schröckenbauer, Kathrin Schröckenbauer is part of what is now the fourth generation of merchants to run the fresh food market in Goldach. And even in difficult times, she is there for her customers. “We also deliver. But only if someone falls ill at short notice or the kids go on vacation while the elderly need supplies. Of course, we’re not meals on wheels. But we can help out for a week or two – or support people in self-isolation at the start of the coronavirus crisis, for example.”
Next year, in 2022, the Schröckenbauers and their “Goldachmarkt” will be celebrating their 95th anniversary. The fresh food market is an institution in Hallbergmoos/Goldach. An institution whose ninetieth anniversary even made it into the local Munich press with major articles. “We had a big party then. We even had a clown in the store. And lots of children close together. It’s hard to imagine now how free we used to live,” recalls Schröckenbauer with some nostalgia.
It is also difficult to imagine the beginnings of the fresh produce market, especially when you walk past the well-stocked aisles with their fresh produce counters and impressive range of wines. But at the beginning of the 20th century, the history of Goldachmarkt began as a kind of corner store. “Therese, my husband’s great-grandmother, started the whole thing. As a small bell store. She was ironing in the back and when the doorbell rang, she went out the front and did her shop. That was probably quite common in Hallbergmoos back then.” What didn’t exist – especially after the war – was a supermarket or self-service store as we know it today. “Simon’s grandfather, Theo Senior, introduced this when he returned from being an American prisoner of war. He got to know the classic self-service stores there and implemented them in Hallbergmoos. So early on and so successfully that even visitors from Switzerland came to see the concept for themselves.”
However, the spirit of Tante Emma can still be found in the Goldachmarkt. Because the Schröckenbauers – driven by the third generation around Theo Junior and his wife Barbara – simply love serving and advising customers, have successively expanded the store in the 1990s and have strengthened the fresh produce section in particular. “This is still our mainstay,” explains daughter-in-law Kathrin. “You can buy classic branded pasta in any supermarket. But we are not a franchise company. We are a free market and can cherry-pick. We can look to see where the best neck rump is, where the best Italian salami is and where the Lower Bavarian farmer’s smoked meat is. This involves a lot of supplier contact and work, but it allows us to guarantee what we consider to be the best range for our customers.”
The best from everywhere, for example the white sausages from the Bauch butcher’s shop in Munich, the smoked meats from Lower Bavaria and the fish from Bayerische Garnele near Erding, which – like a cheese dairy from Tegernsee, for example – make their own efforts to be included in the market’s lovingly curated range of products. However, father-in-law Theo Junior still likes to choose the wine himself on his travels. The vinotheque in general. Here (and only here) there is not only the “Hallbergmoos-Goldach-Sekt” (and its more bitter counterpart, the “Goldachperle”) produced exclusively for the Goldachmarkt, but also a wide range of products that you could still taste every Thursday before Corona. “There were always a lot of regular customers,” recalls Schröckenbauer. “My husband sometimes even cooked. Our customers could then try it with the wine. Or there was cheese. We still really miss that. Because that’s real customer contact. And that’s so important to us.”
But it’s not just the customers who are close neighbors, but also the companies and businesses based here. “We have a really great advertising community here, which ensures a lot of cohesion. It makes sure that things happen in the town, that events such as the Christmas market are organized together with the businesses. We also introduced the Hallberg cheques, which can be used to pay businesses in Hallbergmoos. The municipality has also given us great support.”
Despite the past difficult times, there is no need to worry about the future in Hallbergmoos and Goldach. “Ultimately, we all benefit from the proximity to the airport,” summarizes Schröckenbauer. “And at 38 years old, we have a very young local structure, we are a really young community. That’s great for companies like ours, of course. Because many people still shop here very consciously and know that they can also go to a real store.” Only the catering business has had to be abandoned for the time being – the work situation was too uncertain during the long months of the crisis. “That was always fun! We live for our food and were always proud when we saw it presented on sumptuous buffets.”
So for the time being, the store shelves lovingly stocked with top regional and international products and a range of fresh produce that is probably unsurpassed in the region will have to do. And a look back at almost 100 years of history, which allows only two conclusions to be drawn for the future in the opposite direction: The customer is (still) king and it doesn’t get (any) fresher than this!
Further information: www.goldachmarkt.de
Image material © Goldachmarkt
