A Croatian bakery chain has found a rather interesting loophole in the law to allow them to open on Sundays in spite of the new law that restricts businesses in Croatia to be able to work for only 16 Sundays every year.

These non-working Sundays are continuing to stir controversy, with not only shopping centres and smaller local shops complaining about the loss of business but also members of the public furious. And one of the biggest complaints is the fact that bakeries aren’t allowed to work on Sundays. However, a bakery chain has found a hole in the law and opened their doors, even though not all their customers are happy with them opening.

Pan-Pek bakery chain's counter near Zagreb had a sign this Sunday that read “Sunday, 21st Jan., we are OPEN but WITHOUT BREAD."

This is a legal loophole, as bakeries aren’t allowed to sell bread on the Sundays they aren’t allowed to work. However, they can sell other items such as pastries and croissants. One saleswomen told Jutarnji list that her employers did not disclose many details except that they could work on Sundays. “As far as I understand from the manager, on Sundays, we are considered a hospitality facility. We still have pastries and croissants. Obviously, it's a legal loophole,” she said.

Pastries and croissants allowed – Photo – Canva

She added that due to the law, dairy products and bags are not allowed to be sold.

But the fact that a bakery was open and couldn’t sell bread didn’t go down well with all the customers. On the day after Christmas the bakery had a run-in with quite a few customers. “On that day, we were the only ones working and had a lot of work, but we didn't have bread. I heard terrible insults that day; some people literally yelled at me,” commented the saleswoman.

One weird oversight in the Sunday working hours’ law is that you can’t buy bread from a bakery but you can buy it in a petrol station.