'Soldes' Out in France
Tuesday 15 September 2009
French retailers have been given greater freedom as to when they can hold sales, but they seem reluctant to break ranks.
Retail sales in France are highly regulated, with sales restricted to two periods of a maximum of six weeks each in duration.
The dates of the sales are determined by the prefecture in each department.
As a rule, most sale periods start and finish on the same dates (and times!) in most areas of the country.
Winter sales normally commence the second week in January, while the shops open their doors for the summer sales the last week in June.
When they do so television stations clear their schedules and newspapers their front pages to report massively on them.
Outside of these dates, no sales are permitted, although retailers are able to hold 'promotions' on a prescribed basis.
Since the beginning of this year retailers have been given greater freedom as to when they hold their sales, although the substance of the change is limited.
In future, the sales periods will be a maximum of five weeks each, but with retailers then able to choose a further two other weeks to hold a sale.
However, the sale must end no later than one month before the start of statutory sale periods, or they can continue to hold the sale at the end of the fixed sale periods.
Whichever way they play it, they are required to notify the omnipresent prefecture one month before the start of the sale!
Following the end of the summer sales earlier last month, the general view seems to be that the change has had a marginal impact on both retailers and consumers.
Retailers in particular have stated that the consumer seems confused by it, and that a maximum of two weeks is not enough to communicate the offer and change traditional reflexes based around the major sale seasons.
Many consider the seasonal sales are an important cultural occasion, as retailers are able to collectively organise events around the sales, with obvious commercial benefits.
Indeed, in some towns in France local retailers have got together to plan two weeks of sales later in the year, a sign that the cultural tradition does seem to be continuing with the new regulations.
No doubt there is also concern amongst some retailers that unless a degree of solidarity is maintained between them, consumers will never feel they need to pay top dollar for anything, for somewhere in the High Street there will always be a bargain to be found!
Related Article: France Opens for Sale.
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