They catch a glimpse of the end of the tunnel, but the light is still far away.
Stress and anxiety remain the daily life of many restaurateurs, despite a partial reopening of the terraces on Wednesday.
In Nanterre (Hauts-de-Seine), Sofiane, 33, owner of the Apostrophe, remains closed.
"After establishing a financial forecast, we saw that profitability would not be there by working only with the terrace of 40 half-gauge seats", blows the one who had to lay off two of his 10 employees.
He prefers to wait for a full reopening on June 9.
During the entire confinement, Stéphane Manigold, at the head of the collective “Restons Ouverts” and of four companies in the capital, had to completely close his two restaurants in the 8th district, “for lack of activity in this district where there are many offices .
We are reopening tomorrow, we have installed a large terrace there… ”It remains to be seen whether customers will return to these business districts where teleworking is the priority.
Read also Covid-19: reopening of bars and restaurants in three stages from May 19
The other challenge, far from being won, is to keep customers coming back to the tourist sectors.
“This summer, Parisians will have only one desire: to leave, predicts Stéphane Manigold.
Last year, tourism in Ile-de-France was a disaster.
The shortfall in revenue was actually 6.4 billion euros.
In 2020, 3,537 accommodation and catering establishments in the Ile-de-France region have disappeared
Davy, 35, a Parisian restaurateur at the head of two establishments, in the 11th century and in the Marais, is hoping for a return from travelers.
To save the furniture, depending on the period, he sometimes had to lower the gates of his restaurants, offer take-away meals or only ensure deliveries.
At Distrito Francès Marais (3rd), he received us while preparing for the recovery, full of doubts. “For my first restaurant, opened in 2015, I ask myself fewer questions because things are established. But for him, born in 2018, the situation is more fragile, ”he explains. On the other side of the road, 9 colored squares have been painted on the ground to delimit its terrace which will welcome its very first customers this Wednesday… “I am not too worried about this reopening, but rather for the future. Are we going to hold on? ".
The question obsesses Davy, and he is far from the only one.
Since January, accommodation and catering have recorded the final closure of 1,334 establishments in Ile-de-France, including 372 in Paris.
Over the same period in 2018, the last year before the Covid, the National Council of Commercial Court Clerks (CNGTC) struck off 14, including 7 in Paris.
Over the whole of last year, no less than 3,537 establishments in Ile-de-France have disappeared, where they were “only” 72 two years earlier.
In Paris, the figure jumped from 20 to… 1,089!
The end of state aid worries many
And yet, fear the catering unions, the worst is yet to come.
“The drama will happen from September.
I think that we will lose between 20 and 30%, projects Marcel Benezet, elected to the Paris - Ile-de-France chamber of commerce and industry and president of the branch of coffee bars and brasseries of the national group of independent hotels and restaurants ( GNI-HCR).
It's sad, but I think of the small, unprofitable businesses.
Some did not have the right to loans guaranteed by the State (PGE), nor to the solidarity fund.
Those will be lost.
"
Pascal Mousset, president of the GNI Paris - Ile-de-France also expects a "failure of companies, rather early 2022. For the moment, aid is maintaining a lot.
"
Davy concedes it. “The state has done a lot of work, the support is important. But, we lost about 70% of our turnover, ”explains the 30-something. All the aids are therefore good to take. Restaurant owners represent the majority of companies supported within the framework of the rent payment aid scheme (up to 1,000 euros) granted by the region to small businesses. Davy was able to benefit from it.
"Out of 1,235 beneficiaries for the month of March, 40% are restaurateurs and nearly half are based in Paris," explains the region.
A new device must be voted on this week.
“A budget of 4 million euros is planned for the terraces.
Two thirds of the 18,000 restaurants, bars and cafes in Paris have one.
Applicants will have until July to apply for aid of up to 1,000 euros, ”announces Alexandra Dublanche, vice-president for the region, in charge of economic development.
"For the first time, I paid an advertisement for a job offer and received only six CVs"
But the announced end of state devices worries.
Franck Delvau, president of L'Umih (Union of trades and industries of hotel and catering) in Ile-de-France, defends, to hold, "a reimbursement of the EMP over six to eight years and not in March or April 2022 as currently planned.
The state has put a lot of money into partial unemployment and solidarity funds and it would be a shame if this resulted in bankruptcy filings.
"
Taking care of employees is a major issue for Davy, who has his restaurant thoroughly disinfected by the Icrobe company.
“It's important to do it for clients and my teams,” he insists.
Like many restaurateurs, he faced the resignation of several employees.
“Three out of four have left.
My guys were doing 10-30% of their hours, so they decided to quit the restaurant business.
"
Stéphane Manigold for his part recorded a "turnover of 10%!" ". Another source of anguish. “For the first time, I paid an advertisement for a job offer and I received only six CVs: applications from all over the country and even from abroad, while between the two confinements, I received 150 hp, mainly from the region. According to the unions, there is a lack of "100,000 arms in the country".
