After two blank years, the Foire Expo de Nancy launched its 2022 edition on Saturday June 4. While prices continue to rise, visitors are more attentive to purchases while exhibitors are feeling the brunt of the increase in the prices of their raw materials.
The last two editions of the Nancy Expo Fair could not take place due to the health crisis. Saturday June 4, 2022, it reopened until June 12. In the aisles of some 400 exhibitors, the first visitors wander around and take advantage of this rediscovered meeting. But with rampant inflation, which is set to last, most buyers are paying more attention to prices before buying.
Aurélie and Jérémy, 38, are regulars at the Foire Expo. If they come to enjoy the entertainment offered by the event with their son, they are also looking for furniture for their terrace. With the increase in prices, they have already had to change supermarkets in order to save money.
So at the fair, they pay attention to prices. “We may be downgrading some claims”explains Aurélie. “We know prices will continue to rise so we will benchmark and maybe buy quickly before prices rise too much”details this hotel manager.
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In the craftsmen’s hall, Virginie and Romain, a stay-at-home mother and temporary worker in the industry, made some purchases. In their bags: wine, meat and cups. The rest of the year, the couple and their two children tighten their belts. “We consume locally, we don’t go on vacation, we don’t eat in restaurants. So today at the fair, we want to have a little fun”they confide.
At the motorcycle stand, Jean-Luc, storekeeper forklift driver, and his wife Bernadette, unemployed, linger. “We would like a motorbike but it’s a bit expensive and that means insurance and fuel. It slows down!”observes the 58-year-old man for whom the Expo Fair has been a tradition since childhood.
“All prices have soared so we are more observant, we can remove the superficial”, notes for her part Stéphanie, 50 years old and pharmacy preparer. Same story on the side of Evelyne, retired. “We have to pay attention to prices, everything is going up! But it feels good to get out a bit”remarks the 70-year-old woman.
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Other visitors, like Guillaume and his parents have “always pay attention to the prices”. In search of a new portal, this 40-year-old developer analyst, blue pocket under his arm, has already requested two quotes from exhibitors and will take the right price. Léa and her companion Sylvain, meanwhile, stocked up on charcuterie, cheese and spirits. “We don’t look at the prices”admits the young woman, happy to stock up on artisanal products that she cannot find in city shops.
In May, year on year, prices increased by 5.2%. A new record for inflation in France since 1985. François Werner is chairman of the board of directors of Destination Nancy, in charge of the management and operation of the Parc Expo. “Life is getting expensive, that’s why we shouldn’t offer only a strictly commercial activity” at the Expo Fair, he believes. Well aware that inflation could affect sales this year, he adds: “We come here to spend time, have a nice day, buy just the right thing: just the product we really need, and at the right price.”
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As for exhibitors, some sectors are more affected than others by the increase in raw material prices. Like Audrey, designer of clothes and accessories. For the first time since the creation of her brand “L’épine du soir” six years ago, she “[s]I wonder if [elle ne va] don’t have to stop [son] activity”. The craftswoman finds that buyers are more reluctant to spend money on superfluous items.
“In textiles, all raw materials have increased. The fabrics but also the closures, buttons and elastics”, lists the young woman of 37 years. The fabric she uses to make her pencil cases has gone from “six to nine euros per meter since the Covid” for example.
“I haven’t raised my prices at all. But I systematized my production. I make fewer unique pieces and more series. I’m also more careful not to waste too much fabric when cutting”, she explains. At equal months, compared to 2019, she explains that she only realizes “a third of [s]on turnover”. “I will see at the end of the year if I will finally have to increase my prices or not”points out Audrey.
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In the high-end sector, we worry a little less even if we also suffer from the increase in prices. Ludovic Leblanc is the CEO of Como Cucine, a kitchen specialist. “The price of the cardboard, in which our furniture is packed, has doubled in two years. Gasoline and electricity have also increased, but our factories need energy. Wood and aluminum also increased”he observes.
Result, the prices of its kitchen furniture “increased by 15 to 20%”. “At the start of the school year, I think we will have a small drop in sales”believes the CEO of the company present at the fair for fifteen years.
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