The government could announce new measures to fight the spread of the pandemic on Thursday, including an advanced 6 p.m. curfew across the country.

A possibility that worries florists like Franck Poncet, chairman of the management board of Emova group, owner of Monceau Fleurs.

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If reconfinement is ruled out in the short term, the government could announce new measures on Thursday to curb the spread of the coronavirus.

Among the avenues mentioned: an extension of the curfew to 6 p.m. throughout the country, and no longer only in the eastern departments.

This hypothesis arouses the concern of Franck Poncet, chairman of the management board of Emova group, owner of Monceau Fleurs.

"We fear the curfew at 6 pm because this will mechanically reduce the working hours of our businesses. Often, flowers are bought at the last minute, when we leave work or transport," he said. declared on Wednesday in the program La France Bouge on Europe 1.

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"The more we reduce the working hours of our businesses and we reduce our buying opportunities, the more it has an impact. However, what is not sold is not recovered," he continued.

The flower market is "ultra resilient"

Franck Poncet then drew up the picture of the past year, marked by two confinements and the curfew.

But according to him, the flower market has done quite well.

"If we exclude the periods of confinement, the market is doing quite well. It is an ultra resilient market, which is coping well with economic cycles and various crises. It is growing every year, by around 1 to 2%" , he detailed.

"The market tends to increase in value, we buy beautiful flowers, and to modernize and rejuvenate. It is an increasingly trendy market, we want colors, freshness. We have a younger clientele. and more feminine, ”he said.

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Franck Poncet, however, kept confinement through his throat, during which florists had not been considered an essential trade.

"The containment did not help us. When we are called non-essential trade, it's a bit difficult to accept," he cracked.