“What worries me is that we are only talking about mass distribution” Christian Nosal is president of the federation of butchers, pork butchers and caterers of the Grand Est and he is dismayed. Appalled that the effort made by the 32,000 artisans in the region who participate in supplying populations during the confinement period is minimized in favor of hypermarkets and other drive s only… “It’s not just them and far it is wrong: we are around 120,000 in the Grand Est and even if currently part of the workforce is sick, it is still a lot of people to bring customers, every day, artisanal and quality products! “, Underlines the manager.
The latter, despite a workforce currently reduced by 25%, also sets an example in his butcher-delicatessen-caterer in Thionville: “It is important that people know that we are there and that we are adapting …”
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Risk of disappearance
For these artisans, adapting is not only to face the personnel problems linked to the epidemic but also to respond to the new consumption habits which are being established thanks to confinement: “We have very quickly noticed, in town as in more rural areas, that customers come especially in the morning. In fact, many professionals now open from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. or 1 p.m. and then organize themselves to set up delivery routes, “explains Christian Nosal. An additional service rendered “free in most cases from a certain purchase amount, 30 € for example for me in a butcher shop”. A service for which the craftsmen concerned “take all the necessary precautions in terms of health,” further details the president of the federation of butchers, pork butchers and caterers of the Grand Est: we work with gloves, the packages are dropped off in front of customers without physical contact and payment is made by VSEs which are disinfected on each delivery… ”
The health crisis could well turn into an all-out crisis for artisans: “If we are forgotten, if people don’t think about their local shops, we are going to face serious problems. Turnover is already suffering! The risk is that the past crisis, many craftsmen will disappear, “warns Christian Nosal.
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