There’s raclette, arnica gel, milk breads and even passion fruit. At the end of a 500 m² warehouse on rue des Olivettes, right in the city center of Nantes, you enter a veritable small supermarket. Except that here, there is no sign at the entrance, nor promotions or flashing gondola heads. The products are simply dispatched on metal shelves which bear, like each of the aisles, a number. “It doesn’t have to be sexy,” smiles Simon Marcault, the regional director of Flink in the West, neon pink brand hoodie. On the other hand, everything must be perfectly organized so that the teams find their way among the 2,000 references that we offer. Here, time is optimized. We must always stay focused. »
In operation for about a year, from 8 a.m. to midnight and 7 days a week, Flink (which bought Cajoo) is the only dark store in the city of Nantes. But these “ghost stores”, which promise customers delivery of their groceries in a few tens of minutes and for less than 3 euros, have multiplied in France with the development of the German brand and its competitors Getir or Gorillas. “We have found our customers, estimates today Simon Marcault, who speaks of several hundred orders on average per site and per day. Sunday remains a very strong day. Evenings on weekdays too, from 8 p.m. We have a very good base of regular customers, and several different profiles. »
Alcohol, salted butter, fruit
Target of criticism because of the nuisances or the model, also in the sights of certain town halls, Flink ensures that it responds to “real demand” with prices “aligned with those of a supermarket”. It is moreover to “explain the reality” of its activity that the company invited 20 minutes in his premises, a former printing works, without however authorizing him to take photos or to ask for too many quantified details. While drinks and alcohol are among the most popular products and largely occupy the first shelves, “we also sell a lot of salted butter, Gruyere cheese and eggs, and more and more fruit and vegetables”, assures the director. of the shop. “Customers call on us for food supplements, but also for baskets of 40 or 50 items,” adds the regional manager. We also sell a lot of water packs. »
When a customer orders via the app, a bell rings and the shopping list appears on the screen of a “picker”. The employee then has “a few minutes” to collect the products from the shelves without forgetting to scan them all, to avoid any errors. Then, the paper bag, also flashed, lands in one of the refrigerated bags of the fifteen delivery men (all on permanent contracts) from Flink, who wait in the large airlock before heading to the address indicated, by bicycle or electric scooter. . For around a third of orders, Uber eats deliverers enter and leave with the goods: because Flink, of which Carrefour is a partner, also serves as the brand’s warehouse for its Carrefour sprint home delivery service. Individuals and associations are also encouraged to park in front of the warehouse to collect unsold items.
In the sights of the city
An incessant broom which does not at all please the residents of this central but very residential district, who are more than 2,000 to have signed a petition asking for an end to the nuisance. “Rue des Olivettes is regularly blocked by delivery trucks, delivery people sometimes have accident-prone driving, taking the street in the opposite direction… In short, this place is not at all appropriate for this activity”, annoys Gildas Salaün, deputy to the city of Nantes.
A few days ago, a decree began to clarify the status of these hybrid stores, considering them as warehouses and not as businesses. A distinction that will allow town halls to better regulate the location of future dark stores, accused of overshadowing local businesses, but not those that already exist. The Nantes elected official now hopes to obtain an extension of the police powers given to the mayor, in order to be able to sanction these signs as it is entitled to do for certain drinking establishments.
“We are open to discussion”, we assure Flink, who, in the meantime, takes advantage of his “ideal location”. The company announces that it will soon recruit a security guard whose mission will be to ensure the tranquility of the street, in the evening. The national management did not respond to requests for clarification from 20 minutes.