German garden and pet retailers still in decline

The German garden and pet retail sector continued to lag significantly behind the previous year’s figures in February. Turnover is 5.6 per cent lower in nominal terms and 6.3 per cent lower in real terms compared to February 2025. This is according to preliminary figures published by the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis) on the retail trade in flowers, plants, seeds, fertilisers, etc. – the latter category covering pet supplies and live animals.

Although negative, these figures represent an improvement compared with January. For that month, Destatis recorded a year-on-year decline in turnover of 10.1 per cent in nominal terms and 10.6 per cent in real terms; these figures are also still provisional.