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Closer to the Scene Classico / Hamburg. With 10 multi-brand stores, his own online shop and his own label called bloom, Harald Heldmann has quietly risen to become a Hamburg heavyweight – and a serious contender outside of town as well. Together with his wife Christine, he has been running the Classico chain of retail stores for over 20 years. Now, he's also opened a new outlet in the Hamburg St. Georg district. Text: Nicolette Scharpenberg. Photos: Anna Rabbow
Friendly welcome: Gina Sobek is Branch Manager of the new Classico store on Lange Reihe.
hen Harald Heldmann and his wife Christine founded the company Classico and opened their first store in 1986, this kind of establishment was called a "shop for sports outerwear." Today, Christine Heldmann manages the multi-brand stores, which include a total of eight Classico branches in Hamburg, one in Lübeck and a branch called Paula at Eppendorfer Baum. Harald Heldmann founded Textilhandels GmbH in 1993. He also manages the sales for the cashmere label bloom, which he named five years ago and is now available in over 300 stores in Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Scandinavia. But the Classico shops are still his best customer.
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An Eye on Everything. The myclassico online store has grown into a remarkably successful independent spin-off. Ten full-time employees constantly work to improve the business and focus exclusively on the webshop. "We're constantly busy making improvements, both online and offline," he says. There are already plans to move the shop in Lübeck to a larger commercial space; in the spring, the store at the Colonnaden will get a new look; and the store on Poststrasse, which once bore the Heldmann name, has already received a makeover and renamed Classico. The Hamburg businessman is not about to rest on his laurels, though. When asked about the size of its workforce, he gives one of those typical Heldmann grins and responds: "Around 100 people come to our Christmas party."
Hamburg's SoHo. In March 2011 the tenth Classico shop opened
in the Hamburg St. Georg district on die Lange Reihe – a vibrant small street, with a large number of boutiques and cafés that is often referred to as the SoHo of Hamburg. "Die Lange Reihe is a good alternative location in Hamburg that will continue to develop over the medium term," says Heldmann. The branch at die Lange Reihe replaces the store at Wandsbeker Quarree. "The east side of Hamburg is rapidly changing in terms of the target group," says Heldmann, who explains that "the quality residential areas have been surrounded by new buildings. This means that the genre has gone into decline." The store on die Lange Reihe has brands like Woolrich, Peuterey, Boss Orange, Seven for All Mankind, Liebeskind and, of course, bloom displayed on 112 square metres of floor space. "This store has given us a better foothold on the fashion scene. Die Lange Reihe is currently experiencing rapid development, and the back end of the street in particular has a promising fashion future," he says.
Classico. Lange Reihe 104, 20099 Hamburg/Germany, www.myclassico.com Opening: 31 March 2011. Retail space: 112 sqm. Owner: Harald Heldmann. Branch Manager: Gina Sobek. Staff: 2 full-time, 3 part-time. Womenswear: 0039 Italy, 1921, Alberotanza, Alexia London, Ana Alcazar, Arma, B. Belts, Beck Söndergaard, Belstaff, Bloom, Boss Orange, Braez, by Second Female, Camouflage Deluxe by Frank Stork, CB, Cimarron, Dante6, Day Birger et Mikkelsen, Denham, Derbe, Dorothy Blue, Flowers for Friends, Fidelity, H. Eich, Hemisphere, Henry Christ, IQ, Jagger & Evans, Joana Danciu, Kennel und Schmenger, Kiki’s Bijoux, Kudibal, Liebeskind, Loopielove, Lua, Martinica, Mason’s, Mauritius, Mel & Davis NY, Monocrom, Nakamol, Nolita, Oakwood, Palomitas by Paloma Barceló, Parola, Peuterey, Post & Co, Pretty Ballerinas, Primabase, Pyaar, Reptile’s House, Sack’s, Sete di Jaipur, 7 For All Mankind, Style Butler, Superdry, Taschen Verlag, Ted Baker, True Religion, WET, Woolrich.
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