Ginjinha Sem Rival, established in 1890, digs in heels
Another one of Lisbon’s iconic stores – Ginjinha Sem Rival – is seemingly threatened by ‘foreign investment’ that has transformed Lisbon’s inner city areas in recent years.
German businessman Axel Gassmann is already running a 5-star hotel in the same building and has terminated the lease of the shop, located on Rua das Portas de Santo Antão, a few metres from Praça do Rossio, against the wishes of manager and great-grandson of the store’s founder Nuno Gonçalves, who vows to “fight to the end” – even if it means going to court.
The dispute is being mediated through Lisbon City Council responsible for “Lojas com Historia” (Historic shops) that have been steadily disappearing from the capital’s streets.
According to reports, “hundreds of tourists continue to visit Ginjinha Sem Rival every day to taste the traditional sour cherry liqueur, leaving Abílio Coelho, who has been behind the counter of this establishment for over 50 years, with his hands full”.
But manager Nuno laments what he describes as the current landlord’s inflexibility regarding the business’s continued operation under the same management.
“For over a month, he has shown no willingness to talk to us or to the Lisbon City Council, as he believes he has the right to keep the shop. We hold a different view and, therefore, the courts will decide,” Gonçalves has told Lusa, adding that he has received a “derisory” offer from Axel Gassmann to buy Ginjinha, which is “unacceptable”.
“My family regarded the proposal as anything but reasonable; we found it insulting, because he offered €250,000 for this 135-year-old business,” he said.
Earlier, he told Expresso that “foreign investors cannot come here and do what they want, otherwise, one day, it will all be over, and there will no longer be any traditional commerce left”.
Although authorities have ‘ordered the shop’s closure from next Monday’, Gonçalves assures doors will remain open until a court instructs otherwise.
“We will maintain our normal work pace and, most likely, they will file an eviction notice. We will contest it in court because we believe the Shop with History designation protects us until the end of 2027.”
Ginjinha Sem Rival, established in 1890, is one of 162 shops and businesses that the City Council and Lisbon has designated as part of the Lojas com História (Shops with History) programme, created to preserve the city’s iconic establishments.
Legislation in force says that contracts are protected until the end of 2027, which is the understanding of both the management of Ginjinha Sem Rival and the City Council.
Diogo Moura tells Lusa:“The city council is monitoring this process and understands the recognition of these shops and the distinction that their establishments receive. The law defines legal protection for these contracts until December 31, 2027, and this is also the tenant’s understanding.”
Recognising the limits of his intervention in a dispute between private parties, Moura stressed that he is doing everything the law allows to prevent the closure of Ginjinha Sem Rival, offering even to intervene legally if the dispute proceeds to court.
At the same time, the city council is finalising a proposal to revise regulations on Shops with History to allow for an increase in the number of this type of establishment: 14 municipalities are collaborating on the project.
In Moura’s opinion, there should be a change in the law by the government to “clarify the rights of new lease agreements and strengthen the protection of businesses that, in addition to their historical value, demonstrate economic viability and cultural relevance” to the city.
Meantime, an official source for Europe Hotels International (EHI), which owns the Ginjinha Sem Rival building, said it hopes the space will be vacated by Monday:
“EHI affirms that it remains open to an agreement, reiterating that there is a “very advantageous” financial proposal on the table for those responsible for Ginjinha Sem Rival, which would allow the shop to move to another location, maintaining production and even expanding distribution of the drink in the hotel itself. The company believes that the solution lies in the hands of the tenants, appealing to ‘common sense’ to resolve the matter outside court”.
The same source also stated that the aim is to retain the shop’s original layout and continue selling ginjinha to the public – but with renovation work being carried out both inside and outside.
“Above all, we want to renovate the space and improve its image while fully maintaining the tradition. We have a vision of preserving the traditions and culture of Lisbon. We aim to keep Lisbon’s traditions authentic, which is why we have decided to keep the shop, its concept and its image of quality in the Pombaline district,” said the source.
Axel Gassmann/ EHI consider the establishment’s contract “now outside the Lojas com História rules, because management signed a new agreement in 2014 with the Russian company that previously owned the building”, says Lusa.
This dispute is mobilising citizens and associations in the capital, such as Fórum Cidadania LX – one of the entities that promoted the creation of the Lojas com História programme.
“We now gather in this shop, classified in Lojas com História, and we still face the same problems we encountered 15 years ago, when the shop was also threatened but when Lojas com História did not yet exist,” says Paulo Ferrero, from Fórum Cidadania Lx, recalling that a popular movement to protect Ginjinha Sem Rival partly inspired the creation of Lojas Com Historia.
Ferrero believes that preserving this and other century-old shops in Lisbon requires a structured commercial urban planning policy.
While this dispute shows no signs of ending, Fórum Cidadania Lx is organising a ‘solidarity event’ outside the store on July 5, at 8pm, “open to the entire community”.
Source material: LUSA/ Expresso
