Peters Geschäft Haushaltsgeräte is in Hamburger Morgenpost!
- Petko-Petrov
- May 17, 2023
- 3 min read
Updated: Oct 8, 2023
My father, Petar Hadzhiyski, was the founder of Peters Geschäft Haushaltsgeräte (Peter's Shop for Household Appliances). Together, we built the business from the ground up in the vibrant district of St. Pauli-Hamburg. Unfortunately, he passed away last year after a long battle with ALS. However, his remarkable journey to Hamburg and his inspiring life story continue to be a source of inspiration for me and for those who knew him.
Indeed, the Hamburger Morgen Post contacted us to write an article about Petar's life in Hamburg, and we couldn't be prouder. We warmly invite you to read the article and get to know the man who loved the neighborhood. You will learn how his talent for repairing electrical appliances made him a reliable and trustworthy source for high-quality used devices.
You can read the article here or use this link to MoPo and see how my father's entrepreneurial spirit and his dedication to his craft have influenced my own journey.
Join us in celebrating his life and the impact he had on our family and community.
Translation:
The mechanic who conquered the Neighborhood hearts
How desperate must one be to travel to a foreign country with nothing but their clothes, ten euros, and no language skills? Bulgarian Petar Hadzhiyski was certainly full of hope when he arrived in Germany in 2001. Initially accommodated unwillingly for one night in a pimp's apartment, he eventually managed to establish himself in Hamburg and become indispensable on St. Pauli.
The bus ride from Bulgaria to Germany lasted three days. During this time, mechanic Petar Hadzhiyski spent the ten euros he had on food. He didn't know if Hamburg would bring the better future he hoped for, but things were even worse in his home country. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, the country was stuck in an economic crisis for years. Unemployment was high, and the social and pension systems were broken.
Hadzhiyski went from being a refugee to a popular electrician
His arrival in Hamburg was initially adventurous: "An acquaintance had lured him to Hamburg with a job offer," says Petar Hadzhiyski's son, Petko-Petrov Hadzhiyski. "He turned out to be a pimp who housed him for the first night with two prostitutes in his apartment in Wilhelmsburg. No one spoke Bulgarian or English, and he didn't speak a word of German." At night, Petar Hadzhiyski couldn't sleep due to the high noise level in the apartment. In the morning, the pimp was gone.
Translation:
"My father panicked. He only knew that the job offer was waiting on Reeperbahn. Since he couldn't make sense of the subway lines, he just got on one and rode it. It took him eight hours to get there - without a ticket. It's a miracle that he wasn't caught for fare evasion," says son Petko-Petrov Hadzhiyski, laughing. On-site, his father was given a broken hi-fi system, which he repaired with nothing but a screwdriver. "He was a brilliant electronics technician," says daughter-in-law Wulan Diah Puspitowati.
From that point on, Petar Hadzhiyski became one of the most popular mechanics on the neighborhood. First as an employee in a repair shop for hi-fi and stereo systems in Talstraße, and later in his own shop on Seilerstraße. When hi-fi systems went out of fashion, he switched to washing machines and stoves. "At some point, he could hardly keep up with the orders," says son Petko-Petrov Hadzhiyski. "People drove from every end of the city to have their household appliances repaired by my father."
St. Pauli: Petar Hadzhiyski died after a serious illness
The son came to Germany in 2013. After graduating from high school, he decided against college and for his father's store. "I met my wife, the architect Wulan Diah Puspitowati, in German class," Hadzhiyski reports. The two now have a daughter together.
Translation:
Petar Hadzhiyski died in September 2022 from the serious neurological disease ALS, which Stephen Hawking also suffered from. "In the last year before his death, we had to take care of him intensively," reports Wulan Diah Puspitowati. "It was fortunate that we also live on the neighbourhood."
Today, the couple runs "Peters Geschäft Haushaltsgeräte" (Peter's Shop for Household Appliances) at Seilerstraße 47. "People still ask for my father. He was simply a genius," says Petko-Petrov Hadzhiyski. "Luckily, you're not so bad yourself," his wife replies.
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