Thirty traders from Thionville took part in a meeting on Tuesday in the La Scala conference room to finalize their action plan. Because it is out of the question for them to wait with folded arms.
“The priority of the moment is the management of the health crisis to limit the spread of the virus”, agreed in the preamble the jeweler Tom Gérard, at the initiative of this mobilization. “We believe that we, traders in Thionville, are able to contribute to this, while making our businesses work,” he adds. “They are spaced from each other, we know how to manage access and queues. We therefore offer the government a simple principle: raise the maximum gauge for all stores to 10 m² per person and allow everyone to reopen on this basis. We are convinced that with the investments that we have made and with the experience that we have acquired, we will be able to welcome everyone in complete safety, by limiting flows and crossings, ”he explains.
“We even propose to become an experimental zone for reopening shops, where everyone can see our know-how and our responsibility”, argues Tom Gérard, who intends to inform the prefect, initially, in this direction. “Our deputy, Isabelle Rauch (LREM), also supports us and will relay this proposal to Bruno Le Maire”, he says.
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Favor local businesses for gifts
“The public authorities must keep in mind that many of our businesses are marked by a very strong seasonality of sales”, relays restaurateur Pierre Mariani from the rostrum. “In November and December, some of us achieve half of our annual turnover. What posed less difficulty in March and April is catastrophic in November. “
Another restaurateur, Bruno Clément spoke of “click and collect” strategies and invited “the inhabitants of Thionville and the surrounding area to start their Christmas shopping in good conditions, giving priority to our shops. They may not recover from this crisis… ”
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“Our customers are moving en masse to Luxembourg”
Finally and last message: “unfair” competition from Luxembourg. “This proximity is usually an advantage, there it is a constraint,” said Tom Gérard. “Our shops and restaurants are closed but our customers are moving en masse to Luxembourg where everything is open,” adds Gaby Sirci, patron of the Institut Essentiel. “We also want to alert the government to this specificity. “
Conclusion of Tom Gérard: “We want to let everyone know today that we are ready. »To reopen quickly, obviously.
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