Metzingen, a small town just south of Stuttgart in Germany, is home to Hugo Boss and some of the best fashion factory outlet malls in Europe. Around 50 international fashion brands have flagship stores in Metzingen where overstock items are sold at bargain prices. Hugo Boss alone sells clothes, shoes, and accessories from five different shops in Metzingen. Savings at Metzingen’s factory stores generally range between 30 and 70 percent off retail prices with even larger savings available on factory rejects or shop-soiled items. Most clothes on sale are previous season or overstocked items. Getting to Metzingen is easy by car or train from Stuttgart.
Save on Hugo Boss and Fashion at Factory Stores in Metzingen
Hugo Boss is based in Metzingen near Stuttgart and its factory stores are at the heart of Outlet City Metzingen. In contrast to many other outlet shopping malls in Germany, Metzingen Outlet City is spread over several blocks inside the center of town. The large and modern buildings here remind more of fashionable downtown stores than discount factory outlets where fashion is sold at a fraction of the regular retail price.
Apart from the five Hugo Boss outlet shops, around 50 brands have their own factory stores in Metzingen. These brands include amongst others Bally, Burberry, Calvin Klein, Escada, Joop!, Marc O’Polo, Max Mara, Oakley, O’Neill, Petit Bateau, Polo Ralph Lauren, Swarovski, Timberland, Tom Tailor, Tommy Hilfiger, and Wolford. Sport and casual wear brands with their own large factory stores in Metzingen include Adidas, Golfino, Lacoste, Nike, Puma, and Reebok.
Save on WMF Kitchen Ware and Lindt Chocolate at Metzingen
Almost all factory stores in Metzingen sell fashion but a few exceptions are worth noting. Swiss chocolatiers Lindt has a store in Outlet City selling quality chocolate at bargain basement prices. Out-of-season items such as Lindt Easter eggs and Christmas pralines may be cheaper than no-brand supermarket chocolates.
WMF, probably the best-known German provider of stainless-steel tableware and kitchen utensils, has a big outlet in Metzingen. Many items sold here can serve as useful, non-garish souvenirs from Germany.
Factory Outlet Stores in Metzingen near Stuttgart in Germany
The flagship fashion factory stores in Metzingen are mainly grouped in the area referred to as Outlet City Hugo Boss. All the main stores are here. However, some of the biggest savings are at the Outlet City Samtfabrik – a single building to the north of the town center mainly used by Hugo Boss for special sales. Many further stores in town sell fashion at low prices but are not part of the official factory outlet shopping network.
Non-European residents may be able to claim value-added tax (currently 19% in Germany) back on purchases. Ask any shop for details on the VAT-refund options.
Opening hours of shops in the Outlet City Metzingen mall are generally 10 am to 8 pm, opening at 9 am on Saturdays. All shops remain closed on Sundays.
Transportation to Factory Outlet Stores in Metzingen
Getting to the outlet stores in Metzingen is very easy by car or train from Stuttgart. From the Autobahn A8, which runs to the south of Stuttgart, follow the B27 (and then B312) towards Reutlingen and Metzingen. (When arriving from the east, e.g. Ulm or Munich, use the B313 from the A8 directly to Metzingen.) Metzingen is around 20 minutes’ drive from the Autobahn or half an hour from Stuttgart.
In Metzingen, follow the signs to parking at Outlet City Metzingen Hugo Boss. The convenience of the paid-parking underground garages is well worth the small expense.
Metzingen can also easily be reached by train. From Stuttgart, direct trains go to Metzingen twice per hour in around 40 minutes. Only local trains travel on this route so German Railways Ländertickets may be used. From Metzingen station it is only a few minutes’ walk to the Samtfabrik or around a 15 minute stroll to Outlet City Hugo Boss.
The factory outlet stores in Metzingen offer an alternative to visiting the automobile factories and museums of Porsche and Mercedes Benz in Stuttgart. The wares on offer are still world class but prices in Metzingen are much lower.
Henk Bekker - Henk Bekker is a freelance travel writer currently living on the shores of Lake Geneva in Switzerland.
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