Shopping hours: Difference between revisions
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In all areas of '''[[Queensland]]''', trading hours with major supermarkets are 8 am-9 pm Mon-Fri, 8am-5:30 on Saturdays and Sundays trade on 9-6. Most major shopping centers close at 5 every day, with the exception of one night a week with what is so named 'late night shopping.' If a supermarket is to be found in a major shopping center, they will still cease trading at 9 pm, with special access for just the supermarket. |
In all areas of '''[[Queensland]]''', trading hours with major supermarkets are 8 am-9 pm Mon-Fri, 8am-5:30 on Saturdays and Sundays trade on 9-6. Most major shopping centers close at 5 every day, with the exception of one night a week with what is so named 'late night shopping.' If a supermarket is to be found in a major shopping center, they will still cease trading at 9 pm, with special access for just the supermarket. |
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Shopping hours in '''[[Western Australia]]''' are the most regulated and archaic in the nation. In rural areas of the state trading laws are governed by local district councils, and many have permitted Sunday trading in their districts. Shopping Hours in the states capital [[Perth]] are regulated by laws similar to South Australia. Trading hours are stipulated in law, and are based on size and product offer. As in South Australia, smaller supermarket retailers are exempted. Larger supermarkets are required to close at 6 pm on weekdays (9 pm on Thursdays for 'late night shopping' and on Fridays in the Perth CBD), 5 pm on Saturdays, and are forced to remain closed on Sundays (except in the Perth CBD and other tourist precincts such as Fremantle). |
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==Austria== |
==Austria== |
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Revision as of 16:33, 20 August 2009
Customs and regulations for shopping hours (times that shops are open) vary from country to country.
Shopping days and impact of holidays
Some countries do not allow Sunday shopping. In Islamic countries some shops are closed on Fridays during noon. In Israel many shops are closed on Friday evening and Saturday during daytime.
Each state in Australia sets its own standard trading hours, but in most of the country the shops are open seven days a week for at least part of the day.
For some shops and other businesses Christmas Day is the only day in the year that they are closed.
In the US a shop may often be open all days of the year except Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day (most often - virtually everything closes on that day in virtually all communities), and Easter Sunday, although in smaller communities many stores will be closed on all Sundays.
In Islamic countries shops may have special opening hours during Ramadan.
Australia
Store trading hours in Australia are regulated by individual states and territories.
The states of New South Wales, Victoria, Tasmania and the Northern Territory are the only states in Australia to essentially deregulate laws on shopping hours. All retail businesses in the states, regardless of size or product offer are able to stipulate their trading hours to suit their individual customer demand (although they are required to remain closed on Christmas day, Good Friday, and on Easter Sunday, except northern Territory which can remain open on any public holiday.). The two main supermarket operators Woolworths and Coles generally trade between 6am and 12 midnight 7 days a week, although some inner-city stores in Sydney & Melbourne operate 24 hours a day. Melbourne generally has the most relaxed rules. Almost all shopping centers in Melbourne now trade late on both Thursdays and Fridays as well as being open longer hours on Sundays. Melbourne is also famous for beginning the trend of 36 hour trading in the lead up to Christmas. Some of the larger shopping centers will open from 8 am until 6 pm on Christmas Eve.
Shopping Hours in South Australia are still regulated. however the state government has passed numerous changes to relax the laws. Despite these changes retailers still face complicated and confusing trading laws, which stipulate trading hours based on size and product offer. Supermarkets, which trade with less than 7 workers and with a trading floor less than 500 m2 are exempt from the laws. Larger supermarkets are required by law to close at 9 pm on weekdays, 5 pm on Saturdays, and are only permitted to trade between 11 am and 5 pm on Sundays.
In all areas of Queensland, trading hours with major supermarkets are 8 am-9 pm Mon-Fri, 8am-5:30 on Saturdays and Sundays trade on 9-6. Most major shopping centers close at 5 every day, with the exception of one night a week with what is so named 'late night shopping.' If a supermarket is to be found in a major shopping center, they will still cease trading at 9 pm, with special access for just the supermarket.
Shopping hours in Western Australia are the most regulated and archaic in the nation. In rural areas of the state trading laws are governed by local district councils, and many have permitted Sunday trading in their districts. Shopping Hours in the states capital Perth are regulated by laws similar to South Australia. Trading hours are stipulated in law, and are based on size and product offer. As in South Australia, smaller supermarket retailers are exempted. Larger supermarkets are required to close at 6 pm on weekdays (9 pm on Thursdays for 'late night shopping' and on Fridays in the Perth CBD), 5 pm on Saturdays, and are forced to remain closed on Sundays (except in the Perth CBD and other tourist precincts such as Fremantle).
Austria
With the exception of the country being predominantly Catholic rather than Protestant, the German situation very much applies for Austria, too. Until the 1990s, all shops closed on Saturday noon (mostly at 12) and only reopened on Monday morning. Entrepreneurs such as Richard Lugner lobbied for an expansion of shopping hours, and gradually laws are being changed and more and more exceptions granted. Meanwhile, as in Germany, outside regular shopping hours gas stations and train stations of big cities have taken on the role of Nahversorger (supplying the local population with groceries).
Canada
Store hours in Canada are regulated by each province or territory, and in some provinces individual municipalities as well.
As a general rule, there is little regulation of shopping hours across the country. In the provinces of British Columbia, Alberta and Saskatchewan as well as all three territories (Yukon, Northwest Territories and Nunavut) there are no restrictions at all and stores can open 24/7 365 days a year. As well, Nova Scotia permits any store to open every day of the year except Remembrance Day (November 11).
The remaining provinces (Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland and Labrador) require stores to close on most major holidays. Furthermore, four provinces have further restrictions on Sunday openings. In Manitoba, stores may only open on Sundays with Municipal approval and only then between 12pm-6 pm. Prince Edward Island only permits Sunday openings after 12pm from Victoria Day to Christmas Day. New Brunswick only allows Sunday openings year round with both Municipal and Provincial approval, otherwise it is only permitted from August until the New Year. Some communities in New Brunswick (such as the cities of Fredericton and Saint John restrict Sunday openings to 12pm-5 pm.
The province of Quebec is the only province in Canada that regulates shopping hours outside of Sundays and Holidays. As a general rule, stores are only permitted to open between 8am-9pm Weekdays and 8am-5pm Weekends, excluding holidays.
In practice, few stores in Canada (outside of a small number of grocery stores) remain open 24 hours. Most shopping centres open from 10am-9pm Monday thru Friday, 9:30 am-6 pm (or in some cases 9 pm) on Saturday and 12 pm-5 pm or 6 pm on Sunday. Many larger stores, such as Wal-Mart Canada and most major grocery stores remain open 8a m-10 pm Monday to Saturday and 10am-6pm (in some provinces 8 am-10 pm) on Sunday, except in provinces where further restrictions apply. The Sobeys chain stays open from 7am-11pm on weekdays and Saturdays to further serve their customers' needs.
China
Trading hours in China, including Hong Kong and Macau special administrative regions, are commercial decisions and not regulated. The majority of shops open on public holidays. Convenience stores open 24 hours a day and 365/366 days a year.
Finland
As of 2008, "The law on closing hours of Retail Stores and Hair salons" (Laki vähittäiskaupan sekä parturi- ja kampaamoliikkeen aukioloajoista1297/2000 (fi)) regulates the closing hours of most retail stores and barber and hairdresser shops in Finland.
All retail stores with a focus on foodstuffs are permitted to stay open between 7 am and 9 pm (07:00 - 21:00) on working days from Monday to Friday, and between 7 am and 6 pm (7:00 - 18:00) on Saturdays.
Template:Finland-shopping-hours-table
Sunday shopping was introduced in 1997. The current law permits all venues with a floor area "used permanently for commercial retailing business" equaling altogether no more than 400 square meters to stay open on Sundays between 12 am and 9 pm (12:00 - 21:00). Bigger stores with a commercial floor area greater than 400 square meters are permitted to stay open on Sundays with respective opening hours only during the six mid-summer and mid-winter months, i.e. only on Sundays of May, June, July, August, Novermber and December.
The local County Administrative Board (any of the six lääninhallitus in charge of the six provinces of Finland) may exempt any retailer in its area of governance from the shopping hour regulations for time being, as well as for a given period. Therefore, in Helsinki for example, retail shops located in the central Asematunneli underground shopping center, which is connected to the Central Railway Station, are specially permitted to stay open until 10 pm (22:00) every day, so that late groceries can be bought in the city center.
There is also an additional section in the law, regarding Christian and general Finnish public holidays — when all shops are closed —, and days such as 30 April (vappuaatto) and New Year's eve — when retailers are permitted to stay open until 6 pm (18:00) — and Christmas eve and the Midsummer eve (juhannusaatto), when shops are permitted to stay open until 1 pm (13:00).
The law is in effect only on stores, which retail "mostly foodstuffs" and — more generally — have a retailing floor space greater than 100 square meters. In one important speciality case, the law is not in effect on kiosk type stores: small retailers with a permanent commercial retailing floor space of no more than 100 square meters, and where selling of any "expensive" (customer price of any single product no more than 1000 FIM) speciality goods — clothing, jewellery, photography products, home appliances or entertainment electronics, or heavy or office machinery — is specially prohibited. Petrol station repair shops and quickmarkets, where grocieres can be retailed in addition to car parts and tools, drug stores (apteekki), stores located on airports and harbours which are solely open to international travelers, any automatic retailing (vending machines etc.), street market type retailing, face-to-face retailing, car retailing, florists and any other mostly "speciality" type of retailers carry an exemption to the law as well. As of 2008, such entepirses can decide their opening hours generally without restrictions, unless other laws or regulations apply of course. In city neighborhoods, few housing cooperatives would allow a shop to stay open very late, for example.
Some smaller Tradeka's "Siwa" and Kesko's "K-Market" brand stores fall into the former category of kiosk-type stores. Some of them stay open until 11 pm (23:00) or even later, on selected days, heavily depending on the store and the local demand for such service. Such stores (kiosks) are in exempt to the current general holiday regulations as well.
The purpose of the current Sunday shopping legislation is to encourage small- to medium-size businesses with increased customer volume during the spring and autumn months, thus giving them a competitive advance over the supermarkets which threaten to exhaust them of customers in many areas. This was seen as a positive move when the law was drafted, and practice has shown that it has indeed encouraged small grocery business. (see: Criticism on supermarkets)
Germany
Shopping days and opening hours in Germany were previously regulated by a federal law, the "Shop Closing Law" (Ladenschlußgesetz), first enacted in 1956 and last revised on March 13, 2003. The federal government has however since handed over the authority to regulate shopping hours to the sixteen states with effect from 7 July 2006. Since then, states have been allowed to pass their own law regulating opening hours. Should a state decide not to pass its own law, the federal Ladenschlussgesetz will continue to be valid within that state.
Under the old Ladenschlussgesetz, which currently only applies in the states of Bavaria and Saarland, the general rule was that from Monday to Saturday, shops may not open prior to 6 am and may not stay open later than 8 pm. Shops were also obliged to close all day on Sundays and public holidays (both federal and state), and special rules applied concerning Christmas Eve (December 24) should that day fall on a weekday. There were, however, several exceptions. For example, petrol stations (Tankstellen) and shops located in railway stations and airports may stay open past the normal hours; most petrol stations in larger cities and all gas stations on Autobahns are open 24 hours a day. Shops in so-called "tourist zones" may also open outside the normal hours, although restricted to selling souvenirs, handcrafted articles and similar tourist items. In connection with fairs and public market days, communities are allowed four days per year (normally Sundays) when shops may be open outside the normal restrictions, however such shop openings may not take place during primary church services and must close by 6 pm. Bakeries may open for business at 5:30 am and may also open for a limited time on Sundays. Restaurants, bars, theatres, cultural establishments, are generally unaffected by the shop opening time restrictions. As most public holidays in Germany are religiously based, and since the religious holidays (Protestant and Catholic) are not uniform across Germany, shops may be closed due to a public holiday in one state while on the same day may be open in a neighbouring state. Bavaria even differentiates between cities with Protestant or Catholic majorities.
The shop-closing law was the subject of controversy in recent years, as larger stores (and many of their customers) would prefer to have fewer restrictions on their hours of operation, while the trade unions, small shop owners and the church are opposed to a further loosening of the rules. On June 9, 2004, the German Supreme Court (Bundesverfassungsgericht) rejected a claim by the German department store chain Kaufhof AG that the shop-closing law was unconstitutional. Among other things, the court cited Article 140 of the German constitution (Grundgesetz) (which in turn invokes Article 139 of the 1919 Weimar Constitution) protecting Sundays and public holidays as days of rest and recuperation. However, the court in effect invited the Federal parliament (Bundestag) to reconsider whether the states (Länder) and not the federal government should regulate shop-closing hours.
The federal government handed over the authority to regulate shopping hours to the sixteen states effective 7 July 2006. Since then, states have been allowed to pass their own law regulating opening hours. Should a state decide not to pass its own law, the federal Ladenschlussgesetz will continue to be valid in that state.
No state has so far passed regulation that allows for general store opening on Sundays.
Monday-Saturday: 0:00-24:00, regulation for Sunday varies in different states:
- Baden-Württemberg
- Berlin
- Brandenburg
- Bremen
- Hamburg
- Hesse
- Lower Saxony
- North Rhine-Westphalia
- Schleswig-Holstein
Monday-Friday: 0:00-24:00, regulation for Saturday, Sunday varies in different states:
Monday-Saturday: 6:00-22:00, regulation for Sunday varies in different states:
States with no liberalisation of opening hours:
Greece
According to Greek law (Articles 12 and 13 of 3377/2005)[1] shops can open at any time after 05:00. From Monday to Friday shops may operate until 21:00, and on Saturdays until 20:00. During these hours shop owners may operate (or not) their business as they please. Shops are closed on Sundays. Most local traders associations define common shopping hours for the region, usually:
Monday and Wednesday:
- 09:00-14:00
Tuesday, Thursday and Friday:
- 09:00-14:00 & 17:00/20:00
Saturday:
- 09:00-14:00
Usually most shops follow this schedule, with the exception of big stores and malls which operate during the whole permitted time by law. These opening hours do not apply to nightclubs and related establishments, gasoline filling stations, restaurants, patisseries, florist shops, kiosks and shops in the same class as kiosks, photographic studios, retail shops selling only dried fruit and nuts to which special regulations apply (Article 42 of Law 1892/1990 and Article 14 of Law 2194/1994).
In (strictly designated) tourist areas, the (respective) Prefecture may extend the opening hours for certain shops. The Ministry of Tourism must approve the designation of an area as "tourist". Local worker and employer organizations must be consulted before any decision as to the extension of opening hours, but their approval is not required. The decisions must be published in the local daily press.
In practice, shops are also permitted to operate two Sundays in December by order of the Prefecture. Furthermore, as the majority of Greece is designated as an "tourist area", most Prefectures have the ability to extend the opening hours.
Ireland
Standard opening hours are:
Monday - Wednesday, Friday, Saturday:
- 08:00/09:00 - 17:30/18:30
Thursday:
- 08:00/09:00 - 20:00/21:00/22:00
Sunday:
- 10:00/11:00 - 17:00/18:00/19:00
Many supermarkets are open 24 hours, or have longer opening hours (eg. 08:00 - 22:00).
Large shopping centres are typically open longer hours everyday (eg. 09:00 - 21:00/22:00 weekdays, 09:00 - 19:00 Saturdays, 10:00 - 19:00 Sundays).
In the two weeks running up to Christmas, it is common for many shops to have extended opening hours; some may operate 24 hours a day right until midnight on Christmas Eve.
Most shops in smaller towns don't open at all on Sundays. Almost all shops are closed on Christmas Day, though most are open on other holidays. Off Licenses (liquor stores) are closed (by law) on Good Friday as well, though it is thought this law will change soon.
Convenience stores, petrol stations and some chemists (drugstores) are normally open from early morning (05:00/06:00/07:00) until late night (22:00/23:00/00:00), or often 24 hours, and New Year's Day is also Sunday hours.
In rural areas or in traditional trades, Wednesdays may be a half-day for businesses, closing at 12:30, but this practice has long passed in urban areas.
Netherlands
Regular opening hours: Monday 11 am-6 pm; Tuesday-Friday: 9:30 am-6 pm; Saturday: 9:30-5 pm; Sunday (Amsterdam, Rotterdam, The Hague and smaller tourist towns): 12-5 or 6 pm. In many other towns shops are open every first Sunday of the month (koopzondag).
Each shop is allowed to stay open until 10 pm Monday through Saturday. Some DIY-stores and IKEA stay open until 9 pm. Most towns have their weekly shopping evening (koopavond), when shops stay open until 9 pm, either on Thursday or Friday. Supermarkets usually remain open until 8, 9 or 10 pm on weekdays and until 6 or 8 pm on Saturdays. In some towns supermarkets are open Sundays between 10 am-6 pm. Many towns have one or more little supermarkets (avondwinkels) that are open until later in the evening, occasionally all night. Convenience stores also have longer shopping hours; they are at many larger railway stations ("Albert Heijn to go") and some busy streets.
A regular size supermarket that is open until midnight seven days a week is the Food Village at Schiphol Airport near Amsterdam (located in the area of the airport before ticket checks, hence not only for air travellers).
For specific opening hours in the Netherlands, see Openingstijden / Opening Hours Netherlands.
Switzerland
Shopping hours are governed by cantonal law and vary accordingly. Most often, stores will be open from 08-09:00 until 19-20:00, and up until 21-22:00 on one day per week. On Saturdays and days prior to public holidays, most stores close at around 16-17:00. Stores are also generally closed on Sundays; see Sunday shopping in Switzerland.
United Kingdom
In Britain, most retail shops are generally open 6 or 7 days a week. Shops are not allowed to open 24/7 in the United Kingdom.
Typical opening times are:
Mondays - Saturdays 9am to 5:30pm, or 10am to 8/9pm in Central London Some shopping centres stay open until 8pm or later
Sunday- 10am to 4pm (or 11am to 5pm and 12pm to 6pm in Central London) Sunday shopping has become popular in recent years and most large shops in towns are open for business. Shops 3000sq feet and larger in England and Wales are only allowed to trade for 6 hours on Sundays, shops in Northern Ireland may open 1pm-6 pm. In Scotland, in theory, Sunday is the same as any other day although in practice many shops do not open at all or just open for four hours in smaller towns. In some Free Church dominated areas - for example Stornoway on the Isle of Lewis - Sunday is considered a day of rest and consequently very few if any shops open at all.
Large supermarkets are open for 24 hours except for Sundays. Again Scottish legislation allows true 24-7 trading and the large chains do not close at all.
Many supermarkets and superstores otherwise open from 8am Monday until 10pm Saturday and 10am to 4pm (or 11am to 5pm and 12pm to 6pm in Central London) on Sundays.
United States
In the U.S., the various levels of government generally do not regulate the hours of the vast majority of retailers (though there are exceptions), with the main exception being shops licensed to sell spirits and other alcoholic beverages (for shopping hours, see alcohol sale hours by state.) Shopping hours vary widely based on management considerations and customer needs. Key variables are the size of the metropolitan area, the type of store, and the size of the store. In major metropolitan areas like New York and Los Angeles, many drugstores and supermarkets are routinely open 24 hours per day, 7 days per week, while department stores, shopping centers and most other large retailers are typically open from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday to Saturday, and often with shorter hours on Sundays — generally 11 a.m. or noon to 5 or 6 p.m. On holidays, the tendency is to remain open (with the exception of the most important holidays like Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day where stores are generally closed), sometimes reducing hours or occasionally maintaining normal hours for that day unless local or regional laws dictate otherwise.
Most locations of the country's largest retailer, Wal-Mart (especially its Supercenter hypermarkets), are open continuously except on Christmas Day, unless local laws dictate otherwise. Many stores in the U.S., such as the Meijer hypermarket chain, will in fact advertise "Open 24/7 364 days a year," implying that the store is open at all times except Christmas Day. Other hypermarket chains tend to follow Wal-Mart's lead, although not always remaining open around the clock (hours such as 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. are common). Boutiques and smaller shops often close early at 5 or 6 p.m. (occasionally with one late evening, usually Thursday or Friday), and may be closed one or two days per week (most often Sunday).
Sheetz, a convenience store/gas station chain with locations in Pennsylvania, Ohio, Maryland, West Virginia, Virginia, and North Carolina, is a notable example of a store that is continuously open, 24/7, even on Christmas Day.
In many smaller cities and rural towns, there are strong religious traditions that cause most local retailers to stay closed on Sunday, and the few that are open may have reduced hours. However, many of the same communities will have at least one Wal-Mart that is open around the clock.
Las Vegas, Nevada is the notable exception to all the traditions just described. Las Vegas is world-famous for its 24-hour local culture, since it is a city with large gaming and tourism industries that operate 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Since most of the employees in the city's primary industries work overnight shifts — and because Nevada has absolutely no laws in regards to operating hours for any type of commercial activity — many businesses cater to such workers. Thus, Las Vegas is home to many 24-hour car dealerships, dental clinics, auto mechanics, computer shops, and even some smaller clothing stores.