The Rise of Tourist Stores in Venice

Post date: Oct 07, 2015 2:2:52 AM

In Venice, a major trend occurring in the retail sector is the increase in tourist specific stores and a decrease in resident specific stores. You might be wondering what the difference is between the two.

Well, a tourist specific store is a shop that caters to the needs of visitors in the city and includes souvenir kiosks and mask vendors. On the other hand a resident specific store is one that caters to the needs of Venetian citizens and includes stores such as hardware stores, florists, and grocery stores.

As a result of this changing economic climate, business with plateatici are enticed to expand their use of public space to draw in and serve more tourists. As we've seen before in other blog posts this encroachment on behalf of companies contributes to a number of problems throughout Venice including noise pollution and traffic congestion. However, this trend that the plateatici is a part of, the increase in tourist specific stores, has also contributed to the decrease in resident specific stores. A few examples of popular local stores that have been impacted by this trend are described below :

"La Camiceria San Marco, a clothing store located near the Piazza San Marco for 60 years, was moved to a smaller less prime spot because the rent had tripled. The shop, quintessentially Venetian, tailored pajamas for the Duke of Windsor and sport shirts for Ernest Hemingway"

"In August 2007 Molin Giocattoli, a local Venetian toy store that had become so popular the bridge right next to it was affectionately called the Bridge of Toys, went out of business"

Finally, as one article pointed out "In the Rialto market, souvenir sellers have replaced vendors who sold sausages, bread, or vegetables. Tourists will not notice. They do not visit Venice to buy an eggplant. "

All of these examples help to show the impact the harsh economic climate in Venice is having on local businesses, and although the plateatici is not directly responsible for this issue, it does contribute to the trend. Moreover, information on the changing face of the retail sector will contribute to the team's understanding of why the plateatici wants to encroach in the first place.