This is the good news of the day: the summer sales start this Wednesday and end on the evening of July 23. But this year, the event opens in a climate of “maximum uncertainty”, between the “anxious” political tumult and the “gloomy weather” of recent weeks. Two factors that are not conducive to consumption according to clothing professionals.
” Who will win ? Who will be happy? Who will buy? », asks Yann Rivoallan, president of the French women’s ready-to-wear federation. Remember that the first weekend of summer sales will coincide with the first round of early legislative elections on Sunday. Enough to make the professionals interviewed cautious. It must be said that this long-awaited meeting has lost its event character, with the multiplication of promotional periods throughout the year.
The decreasing budget
“Uncertainty is at its maximum,” says Yann Rivoallan, for whom “the unprecedented media noise” around the elections focuses all the attention and distracts from consumption. Furthermore, “difficult to plan for pleasure purchases”, consumers do not know if there will be “tax increases or reductions” depending on the new composition of the National Assembly to come.
In a survey, the SDI (Union of Independents and VSEs), which represents 25,000 very small businesses, reports that 81% of its clothing members surveyed believe that the political context constitutes “completely” or “probably” a “brake” on consumption.
In addition, even if the sales are “expected by consumers according to several studies”, the French will have “less budget (to devote to them) compared to previous years”, affirms Yohann Petiot, general director of the Alliance du Commerce, which brings together department stores and major clothing and footwear brands.
“Quite a few stocks” to sell
Added to the “anxious political climate” is “weather that is not really supportive,” emphasizes Gildas Minvielle, director of the economic observatory of the French Fashion Institute (IFM). “There are quite a few stocks, more than usual, because of the bad weather in April and May,” confirms Pierre Talamon, president of the National Clothing Federation (FNH) which represents independent stores.
“The start of June, very bad, adds to a start to the year which is not very good,” laments Yohann Petiot. According to initial estimates, the turnover of companies in the clothing sector fell by around 2% “over the first five months of 2024 compared to the same period in 2023”, indicates Gildas Minvielle.
Yoann Rivoallan, however, wants to hope for a catch-up effect, after this gloomy start to the year: “with the weather which was gloomy, many seasonal purchases were not made. Gold, good weather will come back and the elections will be over,” he says.