Economist.com Cities Guide: Berlin Briefing - October 2005

News this month

Grand dame

After three weeks of uncertainty and bargaining, Germany's leadership vacuum has been filled—with the country's first woman chancellor. Angela Merkel, the 51-year-old leader of the Christian Democrats (CDU), will head a “grand coalition” of the CDU and its Bavarian sister party, the Christian Social Union (CSU), together with the Social Democrats (SPD) of Gerhard Schröder, the departing chancellor. The unusual arrangement is the result of neither camp winning an outright majority in the federal elections on September 18th, although the CDU/CSU won marginally more seats. Details of the coalition's makeup and agenda will probably not be finalised until mid-November.

Despite its drawn-out nature, Mrs Merkel's victory is historic—the daughter of a Protestant minister, she is also the first chancellor to grow up in former communist East Germany. And the party she leads is traditionally male- and Catholic-dominated. Formerly a physicist, she entered politics only after the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, quickly becoming a protégé of Helmut Kohl, then chancellor, who nicknamed her “the girl”.

Feelgood factor

A shaft of light has penetrated the gloom surrounding Berlin's economy. According to a report published in October by the German Chamber of Trade and Commerce, almost half of the city-state's businesses reported increases in exports of their products from a year ago, and 32% have positive expectations for next year (20% are pessimistic about their prospects). As winter approaches, the service and tourism sectors are particularly hopeful, and the bonanza expected from the football World Cup, which Germany will host in June 2006, is adding to the buoyant mood.

But not all the news is good—Berlin's 19% unemployment rate, for example, shows no sign of dropping. Almost one-quarter of companies said they would probably shed staff over the coming year, with only 19% looking to employ new workers. According to the German Institute for Economic Research, Berlin’s already weak domestic consumer spending has been worsened by job cuts in the public sector, the largest employer in the capital.

Having a ball

As the World Cup approaches, Berlin's businesses are positioning themselves for best advantage. The latest manifestation of this trend is a new, luxury mega-brothel, which opened in late September, just three train stops away from the Olympic Stadium, the tournament's main venue. Housed in a former warehouse in Charlottenburg, the Artemis, refitted at a cost of €5m ($6m), boasts saunas, cinemas and a swimming pool and can cater for up to 100 prostitutes and 650 male clients. The women are not actually employed: along with the men, they pay a €70 entrance fee and then keep the money they earn.

The owners of the brothel insist the timing of the opening, before the tournament, is pure coincidence. But they admit that a boom in business is expected. While prostitution, which is legal in Germany, hardly raises eyebrows in liberal-minded Berlin, the size and opulence of the new bordello has caused a stir.

Back on track

After years in the doldrums, one of Berlin's most iconic avenues is bouncing back. The Kurfürstendamm (known simply as “Ku'Damm”) was once West Berlin's glitzy showcase for capitalism. But after the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, it rapidly fell out of favour, as all that was hip and trendy headed east to Mitte and Prenzlauer Berg.

Now Berlin's equivalent of the Champs-Elysées is once again attracting the big labels. In October, Marc O’Polo and Stefanel opened shops, to join Valentino and Gucci, which arrived in August and September respectively. Adidas is expected in November, while Dolce & Gabbana and Armani are looking at possible sites. Cartier, Chanel, Bulgari, Hermes and Louis Vuitton already have shops here. Luxury shoppers need look no further.

Preparing for the Wurst

Berlin’s oldest and most famous sausage kiosk celebrated its 75th anniversary in October. Konnopke’s, which opened in 1930 under the elevated railway tracks on Schönhauser Allee in Prenzlauer Berg, is one of the few family businesses to have survived both fascism and communism. Waltraud Ziervogel, its current owner, is the daughter of the original founder. The kiosk has a reputation for serving the best Currywurst (chopped-up sausage covered in ketchup and curry powder) in Berlin.

First invented in 1949, Currywurst has become a local classic. Some 70m portions of the stuff are consumed every year in Berlin, and its fans include Gerhard Schröder, Germany's outgoing chancellor, and Claudia Schiffer, a supermodel. Next March, an entire museum dedicated to the sausage snack will open in central Berlin. Readings and lectures are promised, as well as cooking workshops.

Catch if you can

October 2005

Art from the Friedrich Christian Flick Collection

Until April 23rd 2006

When Friedrich Christian Flick first displayed part of his vast collection of modern art in 2004, Berlin's media went into a frenzy. Mr Flick, the grandson of a convicted Nazi industrialist, was accused of building his collection with proceeds from slave labour. But the show proved to be a success and was followed by a second display. Now the wealthy collector has opened a third, smaller exhibition at Berlin's Hamburger Bahnhof museum.

Subtitled Fast Nichts (“Almost Nothing”), this exhibition brings together 235 minimalist works that share an aesthetic of simplicity. The spacious white halls in the Hamburger Bahnhof’s new wing provide an appropriate setting for a huge video installation by Bruce Nauman (pictured here). Look out, too, for conceptual paintings by Sol LeWitt, black-and-white photographs by Albert Renger-Patzsch and a host of other works from the 20th century.

Hamburger Bahnhof, Rieckhallen, Invalidenstrasse 50-51, 10557 Berlin-Mitte. Tel: +49 (30) 397834-11. For more information, visit the Hamburger Bahnhof's website.

More from the Berlin cultural calendar