The 800-space car park is systematically full.
In Fréjus, on the three hectares of land of a former farm in the “pink valley”, the Saint-Joseph garage sale sees bargain hunters and sellers converge three mornings a week (Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday).
A well-known institution which will celebrate its twentieth anniversary this year.
Here, in a bucolic environment, individuals display their merchandise around their vehicles on stands measuring 8 by 4 meters and buyers parade.
Because at this popular garage sale, the prices are low, very low. Count one euro for a book or a CD, two euros for a shirt, one euro for a glass vase approximately 40cm high, twenty cents for a screwdriver, two euros for a pair of men’s shoes…
An economy that allows the most modest to clothe themselves or furnish their homes for almost nothing. “I live on 600 euros per month, so every euro counts”, explains Maryse, a retired Fréjus resident who is used to the area, looking for pieces of plastic pipe to repair a gutter.
Faced with the merchandise displayed by the 80 sellers present last Saturday, there were obviously some well-off bargain hunters looking for a rare piece of decoration or a precious vintage object with a timeless style and a patina full of charm.
But here, as in many garage sales in Est-Var, the buyers are above all people with modest incomes, who come to find in this form of collaborative consumption the objects they need.
“I almost only consume second-hand products, confides René. Once used, all items see their price drop drastically. “It would be stupid not to take advantage of it.”
“Virtuous consumption”
On the other side of the stands, the sellers also count. Everyone got up at dawn and paid a very modest sum to be able to install their products.
“In 20 years, I have observed an impoverishment of households,” confides Jean-Luc Treve, owner of the premises and manager of the garage sale and market activity.
“Some people repair recycled objects and try to sell them to make ends meet. At the same time, environmental considerations have progressed and this virtuous and low-polluting mode of consumption has continued to prevail. Finally, garage sales are therefore very useful.”
“We spend as much as we earn”
In the opinion of several sellers, “It’s not by running stands at garage sales that you can get rich. If you manage to earn around ten euros in a day, you’ll cover your costs”.
“Sellers are often also buyers, confides Martine, a retiree from eastern Var. I recently sold my house, so I’m currently in a clearance phase. But nothing says that I won’t need to buy items to furnish my new home. One thing is certain, I will continue to buy second-hand. It has become part of my lifestyle. I can never go back. It’s less expensive and more eco-friendly.”
