The situation is as absurd as it is oppressive. Kafkaesque.
“As a business described as“ non-essential ”, I now have the right to open, but I have very few customers! »Plague Germain d’Orta, boss of DG Sports in Valentigney. ” Today [jeudi 17 décembre, N.D.L.R.], I counted ten against fifty in normal times. “
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“The twelve ski scholarships in which I participate every year have all been canceled”
He supports: “Why would you want people to buy or rent me skis when ski resorts, and ski lifts, are closed and it is not known when they will be allowed to reopen? “
Usually open seven months a year, from October to April, his store only offers ski equipment, new or used (no clothes). The figures he communicates are giddy.
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Because of the health crisis, “my turnover fell by 80%. The twelve ski fairs in which I participate each year – in Mulhouse, Colmar, Valdoie, Sochaux (Ascap), Morteau or even in the Geneva region – have all been canceled. They represent 60% of my turnover. “In anticipation of the 2020-2021 season, he had bought 40,000 euros of second-hand equipment in the Alps, or 800 pairs of skis.
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“Among the customers who have rented skis for the whole season, none has claimed reimbursement for the moment”
Misfortune never comes alone, he has a second store, at La Planche des Belles-Filles, in Haute-Saône. But for alpine skiing, 2020 is a year zero.
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The state granted him aid of 10,000 euros. “It’s better than nothing, but it’s not much compared to my losses which amount to 70,000 euros. “He also took out a loan guaranteed by the State (PGE),” 20,000 euros that will have to be repaid one day. He hopes for another financial boost for the month of December.
And he thanks his customers: “Among those who have rented skis for the whole season, none has claimed reimbursement for the moment. “
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“In normal times, alpine skiing represents 95% of my turnover”
At Ski N Surf, in Arbouans, which mainly does rental, morale is also far from being in good shape.
“I diversified a little into ski touring, cross-country skiing and snowshoeing”, explains Nicolas Decrind, the boss, “but the volumes, very low, will never compensate for those linked to alpine skiing which represents, in time normal, 95% of my activity. These are micro-markets. “
Since October and the start of the 2020-2021 season, its turnover has fallen by more than 50%. Consequence: he gave up recruiting salespeople during the school holidays and works alone.
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“If the stations remain closed for the February holidays, it will be a disaster”
The rapid reopening of ski resorts is imperative for him. The date of January 7 was mentioned by Prime Minister Jean Castex, “but I find it hard to believe it when we are bathed in the figures of contaminations and hospitalizations which are not good. “
He supports: “If they remain closed for the February holidays, it will be a disaster. Not only for winter sports professionals like me, but also for hotels and restaurants, for all peripheral activities. “
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