Interesting graph: saving rates across different countries….
Why Germans save so much? Some Anglosaxon financial media will consider boring and anti-capitalistic to save so much. Shop until you drop! So is it something anthropological? Let’s see what Michael Wigge at Deutschewelle finds out…
However here in Italy we used to be quite ant-like and save a lot of money too, so it’s not just an ethnic thing. How come things have changed?
After 2 years on the BerlinRomExpress my personal theory is that Germans save because in Germany you can save. In my street there is an ALDI. I can’t say I buy 100% of my groceries there because I like to shop also at Edeka and at Kaiser’s. But for some references, it would be plain stupid not to benefit from ALDI’s superior price/quality ratio! Think about their mobile phone offers. Unheard of!
During my last trip to Berlin I indulged in a little bit of frantic shopping for my birthday and of course bought books by the dozen (old junkie…). All the books I bought at Hugendhubel were new, yet their prices ranged from eur 2.95 to eur 7.95. There were pocket-size paperback novels but also gorgeous photographic books. To make a long story short, an IKEA bag full of books came at eur 83.50.
In Italy I would have spent the same amount for 5 or 6 books. Now these were all books I had fancied during the year, and I waited for the sales to see if I could get hold of them at a discount. In Italy I never get to see such strong discounts on books. And DVDs: classics at eur 3 or eur 4 were quite a grab too.
In Germany prices are LOWER. That’s why people can save.
If you then behave wisely and, differently from me, don’t buy books by the IKEA bag, you can save even more….but hey, if I have to stimulate the economy, I rather stimulate Berlin’s…because I don’t get ripped off!
Maybe having a PUBLIC SECTOR which works also helps citizens saving money? Germans have an high tax rate, but their public sector services are not in tatters. Italy has a very high tax rate too, and only 27% of the population pay taxes. If I can have a timely and decent service when going at my GP for a health check, I am not obliged to go to a private medical practice and pay more, right? And the public health sector is at the service of the citizen (who is the ultimate payer).
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