Since it's come up and seems to be a contentious issue ...
What are the opening hours in your country?
In Austria, supermarkets are open 7-7, on Saturdays 7-6. There's some exceptions (main train stations in Vienna, airport). Many non-chain retailers close at 6pm. In malls you sometimes get opening hours till 8 or 9 on special days (Thursday). And of course almost everything is closed on Sundays.
In other words, if you want to do some shopping for clothes, shoes, books etc. without running into time constraints, you should do it on Saturdays LIKE EVERYONE ELSE (elbow use or valium before going to the mall or shopping streets is advised).
Pharmacies are probably most tightly regulated - they have to close by 6pm on a working day and are not allowed to open on weekends. In Vienna, ca. 40 pharmacies cover those those slots on rotation (you have to check which one is open after hours or on weekends). Open meaning, the have a street counter open. You can't walk in. No, I have no idea why that is.
Oppression of free enterprise? Or protection of powerless employees against exploitation? Anyways, polls in Austria show that people are happy with how things are. I wouldn't mind stores being open till 10 pm and on Sundays, but I'm selfish like that.
Outside of train stations and airports, Sunday is indeed Lord's Day in Germanic countries.
One has been able to find supermarkets open on Saturdays afternoon for about ten years only though in Germany, and some supermarkets close at 22 if not midnight in some cases (like the big one with a very good beer selection near the Police HQ in Frankfurt) as in big cities.
As for France, Paris is a special case with lots of supermarkets (primarily foodstuffs though) open on Sunday morning and even some "tourist" area open all Sunday and/or closing at midnight on weekdays e.g Champs-Elysées. Otherwise, 9 to 20 or 22.
The small grocery has to be open all times like all night to stay in the competition
In general, this goes for all France, the first shop to open at 07:00 is the bakery for the baguette and croissant. :frog:
As for Portugal, hypermarkets have it easy being open the from 8 to 20 even on Sundays and not just in Porto, Coimbra and Lisbon.
Pharmacies are tightly regulated in both cases.
Major grocery stores open 24 hours, others close between 10-12 pm. Open 6 am generally. Retail stores(besides Wal-Mart and Target, which are frequently 24 hours) usually close around 9 pm. Open around 9-10 am. Restaurants likely to open at 11, close at 10, though some places are 24 hours.
I frequently do my grocery shopping at 3 in the morning cause of my wonky sleep schedule.
It's complicated.
None-essential Retail stores can open 8 am - 9 pm on week days and 8 am - 5 pm on week ends.
Grocery stores and pharmacy can be open for 24 hours but very few do. Grocery stores will usually open at 7 am and close a 10 pm but they have limits on how many employees they can have (4 after 8 pm for grocery stores).
Hardware stores cheat their morning opening hours by offering services at 7 am to contractors only.
There's also exceptions based on location.
I like wandering WalMart at 3 am.
Quote from: Peter Wiggin on September 11, 2013, 03:13:42 AM
Major grocery stores open 24 hours, others close between 10-12 pm. Open 6 am generally. Retail stores(besides Wal-Mart and Target, which are frequently 24 hours) usually close around 9 pm. Open around 9-10 am. Restaurants likely to open at 11, close at 10, though some places are 24 hours.
I frequently do my grocery shopping at 3 in the morning cause of my wonky sleep schedule.
Note that in the US, for the most part, there are no longer any legal restrictions on the hours a store can operate (there are usually some restrictions on the times that things like alcohol can be sold, but a grocery can be open 24/7 and simply curtail beer and wine sales after that time); operating hours are determined by custom and by sales (for some stores, it's simply not profitable to be open 25 hours a day).
Quote from: Ed Anger on September 11, 2013, 06:24:19 AM
I like wandering WalMart at 3 am.
Where Junkies and Drunks Save Money. Live Better.
Quote from: CountDeMoney on September 11, 2013, 06:27:03 AM
Quote from: Ed Anger on September 11, 2013, 06:24:19 AM
I like wandering WalMart at 3 am.
Where Junkies and Drunks Save Money. Live Better.
And everybody seems to have some sort of leg injury.
Must look like the zombie apocalypse then, when everyone lurches through the aisles at 3 am.
At least I hope you're not using one of those motorcarts.
Quote from: Syt on September 11, 2013, 06:40:58 AM
Must look like the zombie apocalypse then, when everyone lurches through the aisles at 3 am.
At least I hope you're not using one of those motorcarts.
Nah. It's actually good exercise, since the Wally Worlds are the size of a small country. Just wander, watch the interesting wildlife and pick up useless shit.
"Oooh...look, Honey...Swiffer refills on sale!"
I'm all alone at 3 am. :(
Quote from: Ed Anger on September 11, 2013, 06:44:28 AM
Quote from: Syt on September 11, 2013, 06:40:58 AM
Must look like the zombie apocalypse then, when everyone lurches through the aisles at 3 am.
At least I hope you're not using one of those motorcarts.
Nah. It's actually good exercise, since the Wally Worlds are the size of a small country. Just wander, watch the interesting wildlife and pick up useless shit.
I was at a few Walmarts in NC; I wasn't too impressed, positively or negatively. A big ass store, so ... yeah.
It was much more interesting to gawk at people when we went to the Saturday flea market or any kind of thrift store.
Walmart attracts an interesting sort. Though maybe that's the sort that NC is full of. -_-
I used to work at an electronics retailer, that was open 8:00 to 18:30 (except lunch time). The supermarket closest to my home opens at 9:30 and closes at 21:30. Chinese stores are pretty much always open.
You ought to see the ones out in the smaller Arizona or New Mexico towns; people travel from the farthest little towns in the countryside from miles away in dust-covered trucks to provision themselves with months' worth of stuff. It's like a Silk Road bazaar for the modern age.
Quote from: garbon on September 11, 2013, 06:54:05 AM
Walmart attracts an interesting sort.
It attracts a huge variety of sorts.
Things get really screwy when your country crosses 4-5 time zones. We're open 10AM-7PM so that we can field tech support calls on things that we've sold to customers on the west coast during relatively normal hours.
The supermarket I go to opens from 9:30 to 21:30 non-stop. The one my parents go to is, IIRC, 9:00 - 14:30 and 17:30 - 21:00.
Normal shops will open from 10:00 to 20:30 or so, with a lunch break from 13:30 or 14:00 to 16:30 or 17:00.
Most places close on sundays, with few exceptions.
24 hour Wallyworld is The Awesome, but most other supermarkets in my town close like at 9 or 10pm, most stores close around 7pm.
Quote from: CountDeMoney on September 11, 2013, 06:57:14 AM
You ought to see the ones out in the smaller Arizona or New Mexico towns; people travel from the farthest little towns in the countryside from miles away in dust-covered trucks to provision themselves with months' worth of stuff. It's like a Silk Road bazaar for the modern age.
You see people like that in the Yukon. They're driving in from remote little communities with no services whatsoever, so they really are stocking up for 3-6 months at a time.
In Canada store hours are regulated by the province. I don't think Alberta has many or any restrictions (other than the sale of alcohol and prescription drugs), but no Walmart is open 24/7 that I know of.
Quote from: The Larch on September 11, 2013, 10:36:19 AM
The supermarket I go to opens from 9:30 to 21:30 non-stop. The one my parents go to is, IIRC, 9:00 - 14:30 and 17:30 - 21:00.
Normal shops will open from 10:00 to 20:30 or so, with a lunch break from 13:30 or 14:00 to 16:30 or 17:00.
Most places close on sundays, with few exceptions.
When I was in Europe I thought this closing for lunch thing was an incredible pain in the ass.
Quote from: Admiral Yi on September 11, 2013, 11:09:08 AMWhen I was in Europe I thought this closing for lunch thing was an incredible pain in the ass.
The quaint customs and folkways of foreign lands are part and parcel of the traveling experience :nerd:
7/11 24/7, supermarkets often 8AM-10PM, retail typically 10AM-7PM (varies), small shops typically 10AM-6PM. Only the tiniest shops are closed for lunch.
Small shops are often closed Sundays. Liquor stores too.
Quote from: CountDeMoney on September 11, 2013, 06:57:14 AM
You ought to see the ones out in the smaller Arizona or New Mexico towns; people travel from the farthest little towns in the countryside from miles away in dust-covered trucks to provision themselves with months' worth of stuff. It's like a Silk Road bazaar for the modern age.
Oh, yeah. I noticed that at the one in Socorro, NM.
One thing I had to get used to when I moved down here was how few drugstores were not open 24h.
Quote from: Admiral Yi on September 11, 2013, 11:09:08 AM
Quote from: The Larch on September 11, 2013, 10:36:19 AM
The supermarket I go to opens from 9:30 to 21:30 non-stop. The one my parents go to is, IIRC, 9:00 - 14:30 and 17:30 - 21:00.
Normal shops will open from 10:00 to 20:30 or so, with a lunch break from 13:30 or 14:00 to 16:30 or 17:00.
Most places close on sundays, with few exceptions.
When I was in Europe I thought this closing for lunch thing was an incredible pain in the ass.
It was strange when I was doing work over there interviewing patients and we took that long break at lunch.
Quote from: Maximus on September 11, 2013, 12:03:38 PM
One thing I had to get used to when I moved down here was how few drugstores were not open 24h.
I wish pharmacy hours were longer here. With the bit that many allergies meds have to be purchased from pharmacy, I've had many occasions where I was unable to buy the medication I needed to feel better.
Quote from: garbon on September 11, 2013, 12:07:36 PM
I wish pharmacy hours were longer here. With the bit that many allergies meds have to be purchased from pharmacy, I've had many occasions where I was unable to buy the medication I needed to feel better.
Yea not only are they not open 24h but the pharmacy often closes before the rest of the store.
Some things close on Christmas. That's about it. :P
I do most of my food shopping at small shops. My butcher is open 8-6 Tuesday-Saturday. My baker is open 7-6 everyday (but I like to get there early to get the bread out of the oven). The place I get my fruits and Veggies is open 10-6 everyday. The grocery store where I get everything else is open 8-10 everyday.
Quote from: Ed Anger on September 11, 2013, 06:24:19 AM
I like wandering WalMart at 3 am.
Yeah, me too. But I suspect for different reasons.
Quote from: crazy canuck on September 11, 2013, 02:01:47 PM
My baker is open 7-6 everyday (but I like to get there early to get the bread out of the oven).
Shouldn't the baker or one of his employees be doing that?
Quote from: Razgovory on September 11, 2013, 02:58:10 PM
Quote from: Ed Anger on September 11, 2013, 06:24:19 AM
I like wandering WalMart at 3 am.
Yeah, me too. But I suspect for different reasons.
I'm not checking out the women. :yucky:
I go to Target for that.
Quote from: Ed Anger on September 11, 2013, 07:23:15 PM
Quote from: Razgovory on September 11, 2013, 02:58:10 PM
Quote from: Ed Anger on September 11, 2013, 06:24:19 AM
I like wandering WalMart at 3 am.
Yeah, me too. But I suspect for different reasons.
I'm not checking out the women. :yucky:
I go to Target for that.
I wish to buy things, but not be seen the public at large.
Quote from: Razgovory on September 11, 2013, 07:29:30 PM
Quote from: Ed Anger on September 11, 2013, 07:23:15 PM
Quote from: Razgovory on September 11, 2013, 02:58:10 PM
Quote from: Ed Anger on September 11, 2013, 06:24:19 AM
I like wandering WalMart at 3 am.
Yeah, me too. But I suspect for different reasons.
I'm not checking out the women. :yucky:
I go to Target for that.
I wish to buy things, but not be seen the public at large.
The term "at large" seems especially appropriate for some customers.
There are places without 24 hour stores? What barbarism.
I don't do much shopping so don't take a great deal of notice.
Most shops in towns and cities in the UK stay open till 5.30 pm, some till 6 pm.
Supermarkets generally till 8 pm, though the largest ones often until midnight, some in the larger cities stay open all the time.
The now modified Sunday trading laws still apply, so all medium to large supermarkets have to close at 4 pm or at least only open for a maximum of I think 6 hours say 10 am-4 pm.
Generally most other shops, other than convenience and corner shops in cities don't open on Sundays.
In London there's a few big 24 hour supermarkets (or McDonalds) and lots of little 24 hour convenience stores. Aside from that it varies, in the community areas I'd say shops are open roughly the same as mongers describes, but then in the retail areas normally open until 8-10.
The supermarket where I shop is open 8am - midnight Monday through Saturday. I guess most retailers in my city are open about 10am - 8pm, Monday - Saturday. Most shops are closed on Sundays.
Quote from: dps on September 11, 2013, 07:21:51 PM
Quote from: crazy canuck on September 11, 2013, 02:01:47 PM
My baker is open 7-6 everyday (but I like to get there early to get the bread out of the oven).
Shouldn't the baker or one of his employees be doing that?
Why would I want it sullied by their hands?
Quote from: crazy canuck on September 11, 2013, 02:01:47 PM
I do most of my food shopping at small shops. My butcher is open 8-6 Tuesday-Saturday. My baker is open 7-6 everyday (but I like to get there early to get the bread out of the oven). The place I get my fruits and Veggies is open 10-6 everyday. The grocery store where I get everything else is open 8-10 everyday.
Just curious. Who does the shopping in your house?