We're in Christmas market fever. That's right, Christmas market fever, not what you're thinking. Because this week, the first Christmas markets are opening. The result is a lot of moving parts at the steppenstrolch headquarters and at various locations all over Germany How can you imagine this? Here is a little insight.
The first Christmas vibes start for us at the end of August (if you actively look for them, as I do). We open our store in Aachen and start a new season, with the first business customers placing orders or receiving a few deliveries. We look for dedicated people for our Christmas markets, while Malte starts chatting to lots of people and possibly organizing a new Christmas market in Germany. Then it slowly gets colder and darker. By October, hopefully all the Christmas markets and stand manager positions have been filled and the first large deliveries from Mongolia arrive in Aachen. From this point on, our warehouse team is basically only busy unpacking, sorting, banding, repackaging, collecting, and packing. The internal phone lines are in constant use. After Halloween, X-Mas fever has also reached everyone who is helping out at steppenstrolch this winter. Our stores in Berlin und Aachen welcome more and more customers and packages come and go. And now IKEA shelves are being carried into small wooden huts, fairy lights are being hung up, and the Christmas season is beginning with the first Christmas markets in Cologne. Who will be holding down the fort behind our stands and keeping everything running smoothly in Aachen this year? Good question!
Christmas market in Cologne's Stadtgarten and Club Bahnhof Ehrenfeld
We have two locations in Cologne this year. Thanks to Marcel, our Cologne team is running two locations and has several boxes of furnishings and wool products. We have been present at the Stadtgarten in Cologne for several years and have a great team there.
Mauerpark, markets, and big city vibes at steppenstrolch in Berlin
Berlin was the passion project of Eszther and Paul, who suggested to us three years ago that we open a store in Berlin. Since then, we have moved from a permanent year-round location in Prenzlauerberg to the Graefekiez neighborhood. The Graefestraße 7 is usually home to the ice-cream parlor spoonful . When it's too cold for ice cream, warm wool comes to Kreuzberg, and this year we can count on Daniel's commitment to follow in the big footsteps of Eszter and Paul. Because the Berlin pop-up store is not only a shop from November to February, but also the heart of our market stalls. At Mauerpark, Boxhagenerplatz, and Maybachufer, steppenstrolch employees take turns at outdoor market stalls. So you'll find us in many places throughout the weekend. In the last week of November, our stall at the Lucia Christmas market will also open. Lisa and Tetje will be taking care of the Christmas market at the Kulturbrauerei in Berlin, and our team in Berlin will be supplying the people of Prenzlauerberg with camel wool socks and yak products.
Aaah yes, and Aachen
Our store is now five years old and has had a few "children." That is, other locations in Aachen where you can find steppenstrolch. This year, thanks to delayed construction plans, we are once again represented together with Bahkauv at the Christmas village in Büchel. Between mulled beer and mulled wine, you will find a beautiful stand that Malte (a different Malte than the one on the flyers) has set up and stocked with all sweater models and sizes. And next to the Christmas village, steppenstrolch also shines over the Katschhof directly in front of Aachen City Hall, above the crowds. Our Christmas market stand at the main Christmas market in Aachen will be managed by Juan this year. And when the Aachen team has had enough of Christmas markets, they can always find peace and quiet and meditative activities at the main warehouse, where Mimi will be offering gingerbread hearts and mulled wine for motivation. In Moltkestraße, shelves are repacked and orders are shipped every day during the week. Everything is now running so smoothly that I sometimes can't keep up with changes to orders in customer support because the order from an hour ago has already been handed over to DHL. It's crazy what the Aachen team is achieving.
Experienced teams in Düsseldorf and Marburg
Malte and I first caught christmas fever in Düsseldorf in 2019, when we opened our wooden hut at the market in front of Benrath Palace on the first weekend. For the sixth year in a row, we are back with a hut and a well-coordinated team in a semicircle around the Benrath palace pond. After all these years, Maya and Selena can anticipate every question and answer in their sleep and are happy to see familiar faces who still remember us from the days of the camel logo.
And in Marburg, we also have a highly experienced team behind our stand in the center of the charming medieval old town. Jerome traveled 4,000 km with us through the frozen Mongolian steppe in the spring and is sure to have some great stories to tell, while Fabian is organizing our stand for the third time in a row alongside his full-time job.
For almost all of our old hands, christmas fever has proven to be more than just a passing fad. Some of the same people are organizing a stand for the third or fourth time in a row, while working in completely normal jobs during the day :) Without the commitment of the people in our local teams, we would hardly be able to get any camel wool socks under the Christmas tree, so we are extremely grateful that once again this year, our fantastic employees are spreading christmas fever.
Every steppenstrolch point of sale at a glance
Shop at one of our business partners throughout the DACH region.
On our interactive map, you can find world shops or owner-operated stores near you that carry Steppenstrolch products.
Christmas fever