Students investigate impact of Corona on Ingolstadt's retail and gastronomy sectors

Students from the International Retail Management bachelor's degree program at THI Business School have investigated the impact of the Corona pandemic on Ingolstadt's retail and gastronomy sectors. Yvonne Betz, Franziska Braun, Riccarda Lory and Markus Stegmayr evaluated around 140 sources and spoke with representatives of local retail and gastronomy associations. Their project was supervised by Prof. Dr. Stefan Rock, Professor of Retail Management and Retail Logistics at THI Business School. The Donaukurier has already reported on their findings.

Overall, the students conclude that Corona has accelerated many processes that were already creeping along. For example, they assume that the inner cities will change fundamentally, at least as far as retail is concerned. The pandemic has forced many business people to make extreme efforts to digitize their offerings. Not everyone has been able to keep up with this pace. Official figures are only available to a limited extent, partly due to changes in insolvency law or the fact that small businesses kept their doors closed after the pandemic. But the studies of the four students already show that the damage will be enormous.

For Ingolstadt in particular, Betz, Braun, Lory and Stegmayr are not too pessimistic. They suggest completely redesigning the city centers in the future, for example by strengthening culture, (outdoor) gastronomy or establishing co-working spaces and childcare offerings. Ingolstadt itself also benefits from comparatively high purchasing power - a potential that must now be exploited.

Click here for the article from the Donaukurier.