- This week of deconfinement serves as a test for traders authorized to open.
- The number of clients is limited. Masks and hand washing are often mandatory.
- The recovery was "vital" for most small shops.
"Certainly, we have reopened. But it's not yet a party, far from it! Three days after the reopening of the shops, the managers of small shops are gradually adapting to their new daily lives. And, as they might have feared, this one is very different from the weeks preceding confinement. The fault with health protocols, essential for "securing staff" and "reassuring customers", but too restrictive to envisage a sustained recovery in sales. Illustration in downtown Nantes.
First constraint: the obligation to drastically limit the number of customers. To be defined according to the surface on the ground and the physiognomy of the place. “With us, it's only one person at a time. If there are a lot of people on Saturday, I may accept two but not three, "says Camille, saleswoman in a seafood shop." We are three maximum, complete Emeline, responsible for 'a delicatessen. It is not much but one cannot do better if one wants to respect the distancing. I have planned marks on the ground in front of the entrance if there is waiting. It's sort of the D system. ”“ Beyond five people, we refuse, ”says Florestan, manager of a leather goods store. Department stores have traffic directions to avoid crossovers. There, on 40m2, it is impossible to organize. "
"It generates stress"
Second hassle: wearing a mask. Most of the time it is compulsory to enter. But it is still necessary to ensure that the message is understood. “We put a mannequin in front of the entrance to impose a downtime on customers. That gives us time to check, ”explains Florestan. “I had two people who suddenly entered without a mask and did not accept being imposed on them. The situation was delicate. It generates stress, ”says Christine, in a ready-to-wear boutique. "It is a source of anxiety," confirms Emeline, in her delicatessen. With us, the mask is only recommended. We don't want to lose the warm side of the store. But I was able to recover some masks which I offer if necessary. "
Third difficulty: manipulations and fittings. Despite the almost systematic hand washing with hydroalcoholic gel when entering, many traders no longer wish to let customers touch the products. "We are the ones who open the items, who demonstrate for the customers," confirms Florestan, manager of the leather goods. It is not a brake but that destabilizes them a little anyway. They tell themselves that it is not going to be the ordinary purchase. Navi, manager of a famous brand of casseroles, does the same. "If you spot a product that has been touched by a customer, put it aside and then disinfect it," she explains. Obviously, that represents extra work when you are alone in the store, like me. "
"We don't want a customer to turn against us"
The problem arises with even more insistence on textile products. "We are not going to prevent customers from touching or trying," said Albert, manager of a shoe store. But they are asked to put on a stocking in addition to their sock, as a precaution. »In clothing stores, strung products are generally isolated in a room, for a period of 4 to 12 hours. "It's the time necessary to eliminate the virus," explains Christine. We don't really know if it works but, at least, it reassures everyone. "It's a great pain to manage," rattle Philippe, manager of a high-end textile boutique. We don't have room to store them and, moreover, it limits the choice of customers who come next. "
Chloé, manager of a women's clothing store, is not content with “hours of decontamination”. “We systematically add an iron blow, before and after fitting, to eliminate microbes. And we limited them to four per person. In return, we are more flexible on returns if there are any. "The health protocols, we have to stick to them," says Aurélien, manager of a luxury grocery store. We don't want a customer to turn on us because he caught the Covid. We really don't need that. "
It must be said that the turnover has been seriously undermined by the weeks of activity. “We have lost a lot since the start of the crisis. We had to take out a loan of 150,000 euros to be able to honor our commitments to suppliers. It's hard, ”says Albert, in his shoe store. "We had already suffered from the demonstrations of" yellow vests ", pensions. There, the coronavirus, it looks like the coup de grace, "warns Aurélien. "It was vital to resume," adds Florestan. And the problem is that we know that we will not find our usual volumes overnight. "
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