Miscellaneous

Rapper Sido closes Berlin cult Späti kiosk as rent rises 50 percent

Svenni's Nachtshop near Ostkreuz cannot cover 6,000 euros a month selling cigarettes and drinks, no reopening planned while album and 2027 arena tour go ahead

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Dieses Foto postete der offizielle Instagram-Account des Spätis kurz nach der Eröffnung. Zu sehen sind unter anderem Sido (45, Mitte), Musiker Bozza (rechts) und Geschäftspartner Armin Bahari-Darakhshan (2. v. r.)Foto: svennis.nachtshop/Instagram Dieses Foto postete der offizielle Instagram-Account des Spätis kurz nach der Eröffnung. Zu sehen sind unter anderem Sido (45, Mitte), Musiker Bozza (rechts) und Geschäftspartner Armin Bahari-Darakhshan (2. v. r.)Foto: svennis.nachtshop/Instagram Foto: svennis.nachtshop/Instagram
Langweilig dürfte Rapper Sido aber auch ohne seinen Späti nicht werden. Ende November erscheint sein neues Album „Frieden“, für 2027 ist bereits eine große Arenatour geplantFoto: picture alliance/dpa Langweilig dürfte Rapper Sido aber auch ohne seinen Späti nicht werden. Ende November erscheint sein neues Album „Frieden“, für 2027 ist bereits eine große Arenatour geplantFoto: picture alliance/dpa Foto: picture alliance/dpa

Berlin rapper Sido is closing his late-night kiosk Svenni's Nachtshop after five and a half years, with the rent near Ostkreuz up from 4,000 euros a month to 6,000 — an increase of fifty percent. “The rent is getting too expensive. We can no longer afford it,” the 45-year-old said on the podcast “Take me Späti”. According to Bild, sales of cigarettes, drinks and the rest of the Späti assortment cannot cover the new sum, even in good times.

The shop opened in June 2021, born of a spontaneous idea among friends during the pandemic — the concept came from a friend who already ran a Späti of his own — and Sido ran it together with musician Bozza and business partner Armin Bahari-Darakhshan. It was a large one for the genre, more than a hundred square metres, stocking the classic kiosk range alongside unusual snacks from the USA and Asia, with a sofa in the back room and a fridge wall sponsored by Jägermeister. The name was an insider's joke: “At the time we did the store, we all always called each other Svenni,” Sido explained.

Spätis — the corner shops that supply Berlin when everything else has closed — are institutions of the city's street life, and Svenni's Nachtshop carried a cult status few of them enjoy. None of it changes the landlord's arithmetic. As Bild notes, even with good business 6,000 euros a month is hardly manageable for a small kiosk. Asked by podcast moderator Sara Arslan whether he could imagine opening a new Späti at a cheaper address, Sido answered: “No, not planned.”

His new album “Frieden” is released at the end of November, and a large arena tour is already planned for 2027. The shop where friends called each other Svenni closes at a rent of 6,000 euros a month.