the Unrest in Paris will now have an unfortunate consequence for businesses in the city.
Just three weeks before christmas eve is the well-known shopping centres Lafayette and Printemps department stores almost empty of customers.
December is traditionally the most important month for the stores, and now many are concerned that the lack of circulation causes them to turn the key on, writing the tv channel France24.
Especially the smaller shops are worried.
“We fear for our survival,” says an organisation representing shop owners, writes the tv channel.
For this week’s demonstrations come in the wake of a year of turmoil, after that among other things, the organisation, The Yellow Jackets again and again have demonstrated in the streets of Paris.
“Many of us have experienced a decrease in turnover. Some of us are drowning in bank fees, we have difficulty paying our loan, and we have had to close shops,” explains the organization, which calls on citizens to support the stores by shopping.
Paris and other French cities are now plagued by large, violent demonstrations because of the government’s plans on pension reform.
at the same time a strike among public employees paralyzed the transport.
Trains, buses and virtually all of the parisian metro is out of service.
In the well-known shopping center Lafayette you can feel the emptiness.
“There are significantly fewer people than on a normal Saturday. There is still little tourists, but there are very few locals,” says Achan, who works in an Acne clothing store in Lafayette, to France24.
