Increasing visitor numbers: According to the study, city centers are becoming more attractive again

More people are moving back to the city centers: According to a survey, German city centers are becoming more attractive to consumers. Accordingly, more than 80 percent of those surveyed said they wanted to visit their city center as often or even more often than before - mostly for shopping. Their share increased by around 20 percentage points compared to a survey from 2024. This emerges from a survey by the consulting company Cima on behalf of the German Trade Association (HDE).

However, the proportion of those who want to go to the city center less often or not at all in the future fell from around 35 percent in 2024 to just under 17 percent in the current survey. “Everything suggests that the many initiatives, investments and development programs of recent years are having an increasingly positive impact,” said study author Roland Wölfel.

According to the survey, the main reason for visiting the city center remains shopping. Visits to restaurants or cafés are also high on the list of reasons why people move to city centers. Further down are fitness and sport or the cultural offerings.

However, the HDE sees further need for action on the part of the cities. Increasing vacancies and vandalism increased people's feeling of insecurity. The association is calling for settlement managers and targeted political incentives to quickly revive empty stores with new concepts.

The survey also shows that consumers want a more differentiated offering, such as more youth and children's offerings or better medical and health care. For the study, Cima said it interviewed around 5,000 people nationwide in May and June.

Even if shopping offers attract people, there is still room for improvement in meeting places and other offers. How can we redesign public spaces so that they invite more togetherness? Read more about this here.