Failing to be able to drink a glass of wine or a cocktail on the terrace, the French turn to their wine merchants to taste good wines.
The profession has indeed been highlighted by the health crisis which keeps bars and restaurants closed.
Read also: Wine merchants want to resist the decline in spirits
“There is a general trend that has accelerated with the crisis, which consists of reconnecting with one's immediate environment. Wine merchants have therefore rather consolidated their role by taking care of the human relationship with their customers, ”
Nathalie Viet, general delegate of the union of professional wine merchants (SCP)
, explains to
Figaro
.
A phenomenon which results in an average increase in their turnover over the year 2020. According to a survey by the General Confederation of Retail Food (CGAD), on specialized local food stores, more than eight wine merchants in ten said they had increased their turnover by around 10 to 20% against a little less than one in two stores for the rest of the local establishments questioned by the survey.
"There is a real good health of the wine merchants at the end of the year which is logical since it is a period of celebration"
, analyzes Nathalie Viet.
These good results continue in 2021 since in January a little more than seven wine merchants out of ten had stable activity or increased compared to the previous year.
Provincial wine merchants in difficulty
The general delegate of the wine merchants' union, however, wishes to qualify this good general form, highlighting
“disparate situations”
.
According to her, if large cities like Paris have benefited from a postponement of consumption of bars and restaurants and the need to find social links through local commerce, the wine merchants in the provinces are in more difficulty.
"They suffered from the impossibility of gatherings between friends or family"
which was less felt in the big cities
.
“The wine merchant is a provincial business and very spread over the territory.
Those in the capital only represent 20% of the 5,800 points of sale, ”
recalls Nathalie Viet.
Professionals located in tourist areas have also blamed the blow.
Read also: The wine merchant V and B surfs on new trends
Regarding 2021, the union of professional wine merchants wants to remain optimistic.
Even if bars and restaurants are reopening their doors, the sector is counting on
"the loyalty of these customers who have discovered wine merchants"
.
Especially since even if the French will want to leave their homes and consume in these establishments,
"some have been able to taste very good bottles in recent months that they did not dare afford at the restaurant and which are at lower prices. affordable with us, ”
adds Nathalie Viet.
Not to mention that many wine merchants had bars and restaurants as customers and therefore impatiently await their reopening.
As for the wine industry, it has been heavily affected by the crisis but also by the customs taxes imposed by Donald Trump on several European countries, including French wines.
But it has just recorded a first victory.
At the beginning of March, the Bien administration decided to suspend for four months the surcharge imposed by its predecessor.
