This is THE subject of the moment; the one which swells, turns in a loop but which will perhaps fall back. Or not. The undisputed locomotive of the Capucins gallery but above all the last bookstore in the city center, the Leclerc cultural space is said to be on the way. A migration to the gallery of the Linkling’s flagship is targeted. The square has been very hot there since a restaurant and leather goods have disappeared.
In recent weeks, employees have even informed worried customers and confirmed a move for next June. In other words tomorrow. In reality, all is not so frozen. Contacted at the start of the week, Serge Febvre, big boss of the company which operates the Leclerc brand signs in northern Moselle, assures us that “there is no project to transfer the Cultural Space to the Linkling”.
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“Today, I have no idea what will happen: will Fnac arrive in town; Are the Capuchins on sale or not… We don’t know anything ”and this is not likely to reassure the manager. The Covid-19 period having done its job of undermining long-term strategies, it is difficult to project. At the Capucins, Serge Febvre has had a precarious lease for 5 years, which allows him great flexibility. For now, therefore, the Cultural Space remains where it is. Of which act.
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A playing card in the center
Serge Febvre, who has managed to mesh the periphery with a hyper, several drives and a Leclerc Express, nonetheless observes the heart of Thionville with attention. “I am confident in its attractiveness. The future tells me that the development of trade will be done more and more in city centers, because people want proximity ”. So, yes, he looks at, assesses the new opportunities that could emerge, whether in the core business of the brand (food) or its derivatives. “Thionville is my city; I want to be part of it, ”he confesses. With a prerequisite: “to develop sustainable projects there”. Between the lines, we understand that everything is not so simple, a fortiori when France is reconfigured from one season to the next.
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Hisler is “tempted”
This is not the first time that the Cultural Space has created scares in the city center. So behind the scenes, the search for plans B is launched. Anne-Karine Ivanov, city manager, does not say the opposite. “Today, large brands such as Fnac are developing new concepts, on smaller surfaces of 200 to 300 m 2. Seeing this franchise (or another) arrive one day remains entirely within the realm of possibility”. In any case, the young woman works there.
However, contacts are more advanced with another interlocutor: the Hisler-Even bookstore. An institution in Metz, which has also managed to make a good place for itself at Geric (Hisler BD bis) since 2010. “At the time, it was a gamble. We started with 100 m²; Cultura already existed, ”says Simone Hisler. The independent trader admits that she recently came to visit locals on the pedestrian plateau. “Either it’s too big or it’s too small. We think but yes, we are tempted, despite the complicated period! A city of 40,000 inhabitants has a place for a bookstore in the city ”, she pleads with experience. And to insist: “I’ve been touring Thionville for twenty years”. Maybe this year will be a good one.
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