I have several friends who work in this business and many have their own shops and franchising stores.
In Italy bureaucracy is tough in many fields and this sector suffers from that.
New laws and legislation are implemented each day and it is certainly hard to define it as a free trade.
One of the most important laws in Italy concerns store hours. In Italy, the determination of openings is an exclusive competence of the State, but the Regions also have competence in matters of trade and can implement the state regulations containing opening (and closing) obligations.
As mentioned above, national law establishes guidelines for openings and closings. Retail store opening hours are from seven to ten maximum. Within this time frame, the shopkeeper will set the opening hours for his store which, however, cannot remain open for more than thirteen hours per day.
In general, commercial establishments must respect the closing on Sundays and bank holidays, as well as the half-day closing during the week.
What is that? Well, Italians knows it well: on Monday no pastry shop is open, it is hard to get a haircut too on a Monday; on Wednesday and Monday many restaurants and pizzerias are closed too; no stationery shops are open on a Monday either and clothes shops are normally closed on Thursday mornings.
Don’t ask me why.
In large cities such as Milan and Rome, things are slightly different and shops (usually chains) are almost always open and working.
The Regions and, specifically, the Municipalities are given the possibility of identifying changes to the legislation also in relation to the specific characteristics of the reference territory. Municipalities, in fact, can determine days of derogation from the obligation to close on Sundays and holidays and, in areas with a predominantly tourist economy and in cities of art, merchants can freely determine the opening and closing times of shops and waive the obligation to close on Sundays and holidays.
However, the Municipality has the possibility to intervene and exercise its power of inhibition on activities for proven needs for the protection of order, so as to guarantee the safety of the city and urban decorum, for instance they can impose limitations on the times of sale and administration of alcoholic beverages.
And older family members tell me that things used to be stricter in the past.
Today, despite the liberalization of working hours, workers are protected with respect to the number of working hours and are entitled to an increase for work at non-ordinary hours.
Nowadays we witness an increase in purchases, but not in all product categories. Leaving consumers the opportunity to choose how to manage their time allows them to be able to shop even during the holidays, better reconciling work and family loads.
Especially on extraordinary opening days, it is important for shopkeepers to be able to manage the influx of customers and the operations of the different types of payments in the most efficient way possible and let’s remember that stores now have a very strong competitor: the Internet and web sales.
In Italy many shops are suffering because of the competition of famous websites selling goods for cheaper and with fast delivery services.
It is somehow sad to stroll around the city center and see shops closing down for this reason.
Many shops have been open for ages and passed down generations so it’s unfortunate.
Many shopkeepers leave a handwritten sign on the door
