Local shopkeeper appeals to customers: spend 10 kroner more per week to save your village store

A small grocery store owner in the Danish village of Rødding has urged residents to spend an extra 10 kroner per household each week to keep the business afloat, as rising costs and competition threaten its survival, DR Nyheder reports.

Kenneth Jul, owner of Min Købmand in Rødding near Viborg, says soaring expenses—driven in part by global price increases—have squeezed profits, while customers increasingly turn to discount chains. The recent reopening of a rival store in neighbouring Løvel has added further pressure.

“Costs are rising, people have become more price-conscious, and with the new competitor, it’s hard to break even right now,” Jul told DR Nyheder. He has already cut opening hours, expanded product ranges, and reduced deliveries, but warns that without a turnaround, the shop may close within a year. “If I can’t find savings and nothing changes, I won’t have the 400,000 kroner needed to cover losses.”

Trend researcher Dorte Wimmer of Retail Institute Scandinavia notes that seven in ten Danes feel inflation most acutely in grocery shopping, pushing them toward discount retailers. “We’ve seen a clear shift over recent years—people shop more at discount stores to stretch their budgets, and that often comes at the expense of small, local shops,” she said.

Some residents, like 29-year-old Leslie Skovhus Tøttrup, say the appeal has prompted them to reconsider where they shop. “We’ll definitely shift more of our spending there,” he said. Lea Larsen, a mother of young children, already shops at Min Købmand four to five times a week and values the convenience. “It’s a huge help—my kids can even pop down for milk if I’m busy,” she said.

The store occupies premises saved by community effort in 2018, after the previous LokalBrugsen closed. Local investor Kaj Lorenzen, 76, who helped fund the renovation, remains cautiously optimistic. “People remember what it was like without a shop here,” he said. “I think they’ll support it.”