Paris (AFP)
The Minister of the Economy Bruno Le Maire announced Tuesday that the start of the summer sales was postponed from June 24 to July 15, in order to meet the demand of certain merchants whose points of sale remained closed for a long time because of the coronavirus.
"The sales will start on July 15 and will last four weeks," said Le Maire on RTL, explaining that this decision was taken "at the request of small traders".
"I wanted to postpone the date of the sales to take into account the situation of small traders", who need "time" to "replenish" their cash, after several months of closure due to the epidemic of coronavirus, explained the minister.
"I know that it can pose difficulties for other big brands (...) but I think it is legitimate to support in these very particular moments those who are the weakest, those who have the most threatened treasuries ", detailed Mr. Le Maire.
"It is a question of both economic efficiency but also justice," he added.
According to official texts, the period of summer sales in most departments of metropolitan France was initially set from Wednesday June 24 to Tuesday July 21, 2020.
But by the end of March, in full confinement, several federations of traders had started to reflect on the subject in the face of a crisis of unprecedented scale for the sector, and asked that their date and duration be changed.
With three issues to consider: very large stocks that accumulated during the two months of store closings, cash at the bottom to be urgently bailed out and consumption that will not resume as before.
© 2020 AFP