La Petite Ferme, located avenue Jacques-Bordeneuve, in Villeneuve-sur-Lot, is not spared by the economic context. The store, managed by an association of producers and consumers of organic products, is in financial difficulty. Open since May 2022, its aim is to offer, in a single store, products from local organic farming: “We only have two or three producers who come from Bergerac”, underlines Estelle Viellanais, member of the council. of administration.
For several weeks now, the association has been receiving help via the local support system: “We are forced to reduce the payroll to get by. It's not a happy thing. Especially since it clashes with our beliefs,” she laments. There is no question, however, that La Petite Ferme will drastically reduce its opening hours to the public, thus risking losing customers: “However, we have decided to close on Monday, even though we were open in the afternoon. »
Call to consumers
The association wants to mobilize its troops (1) for a new organization which will be put in place in January, and thus compensate for the loss of 24 hours of paid work: “The initial idea was that producers would come to the store to sell their products rather than on the markets, recalls Estelle Viellanais. But, so far, we have not been able to put this in place. Because managing a store is not that simple. You need to have some skills, particularly in cash handling, and above all, inventory management. »
If on this last point, the structure has evolved well, by creating an intranet network for producers, thus avoiding the ruptures “that we may have experienced in the beginning”. The fact remains that few of them manage to regularly find time to come and run the shop, “especially in the middle of the harvest season,” adds Estelle Viellanais. However, we have found that when they are present to explain to customers their way of working, they sell more. »
Contrary to popular belief, we are competitive on many products”
So, La Petite Ferme decided to appeal to all the goodwill, including that of consumers who are members of the association: “The idea is that they become active consumers and run the store half a day a week . We will also think about how to better communicate, take actions and make ourselves known. »
Because, for several months now, the store has expanded, with new offerings that are still too unknown to customers: “Since July, we have had ready-to-go meals on the shelves to be reheated, cooked by some of our producers. Since May, we have been offering monthly baskets, at 20, 30 or 50 euros, to order. And contrary to popular belief, we are competitive on many products. »
(1) A meeting open to all is planned for Tuesday, December 10 at 7 p.m., at La Petite Ferme, 1 avenue Jacques-Bordeneuve, in Villeneuve-sur-Lot.
