Mayor Marcus König officially inaugurated the new store of the Lebküchnerei Schmidt on Königstraße. König even took a hands-on role himself, shaping his own gingerbread cookie.
According to the long-established gingerbread producer, they have opened the largest gingerbread shop in the world right in the heart of the old town - a claim confirmed by the Congress and Tourism Office on their website. Hitradio N1 reports that the store covers almost 4000 square meters. Since last Tuesday, November 18, activity has returned to the former "Overbeck" department store between the main train station and the "Lorenzkirche." As with some of Lebküchnerei Schmidt’s other locations, this is a seasonal outlet - open during the pre-Christmas period and closing again on Christmas Eve.
According to a press release, the branch differs from the other stores not only in size: In the basement, there is a bakery where Lebkuchen-Schmidt, in cooperation with the Nuremberg Congress and Tourism Center (CTZ), offers workshops - here, even the mayor has tried his hand at gingerbread baking. Groups of six to 25 participants can learn how to bake gingerbread under expert guidance. These roughly two-hour mini-seminars are held from Thursday to Saturday until Saturday, December 20. Participation costs €29 for adults and €14.95 for children. Bookings are made through the CTZ website.
Recently, the vacancy-plagued Nuremberg city center has seen a number of new tenants and providers: for example, the restaurant chain Wilma Wunder opened on Königstraße last week. The former Kaufhof department store has also been revitalized - with Ikea, Schuh Tretter, a pop-up store by Was ist was, and an outlet of the fashion brand Wöhrl. Additionally, a sporting goods discount store launched its first XXL branch in Nuremberg.
“We want this store to contribute to the appeal of our city center,” said Jürgen Brandstetter, Managing Director of Lebkuchen-Schmidt since 2019, in a company statement. Mayor Marcus König (CSU) believes that the gingerbread has long embodied “the full diversity” that sets Nuremberg apart.
Since 1927, Lebkuchen-Schmidt has been baking the nutty Christmas classics in southern Nuremberg. In the city center, the bakery operates three locations - and of course, stalls can also be found at the Nuremberg Christkindlesmarkt.