Worried about the spread of the coronavirus, some French people are starting to stock up on food. " This week we are seeing an explosion in the drive: where we had progressions of 10 or 15%, it has increased to 30%, " said Thierry Cotillard, president of Intermarché and Netto, on RTL. These consumers who favor the drive thus limit contact with other people as much as possible, because they fear contamination, he interpreted. " A few families of products oversold this week, including pasta or rice, " he added . We can clearly see the mistrust of certain consumers, who are starting to stock up. "The leader sought above all to" reassure the 10 million people who come to our Intermarché and Netto: we are always supplied, we must not fall into psychosis. "
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The Système U group, which notably owns Super U, Hyper U and even U Express, is also seeing this trend, particularly in the Oise. In this department, where 12 people are infected with coronavirus on Thursday evening, the brand observes " a significant increase in orders at the drive, " said a spokesman for Le Figaro .
In Compiègne, a Chronodrive has been hit hard by this movement: " in one morning, we made the same figure as last week, " reports a spokesperson. If the volume of orders is " unusual, especially during the holiday period ", the content of the races is also. " Customers are buying a lot more canned and starchy foods, and the price of the average basket has gone up, " he says. In this store, the influx of orders began " as of Wednesday afternoon ", that is to say the day of the announcement of the two confirmed cases in the department, including one deceased.
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Other brands, notably Auchan or Carrefour, do not notice any particular influx in their stores.