In recent months, there have been successive closures at Cour Perrinon. After two stores a few months ago, the Carrefour Market in the shopping center is lowering its curtains this Saturday, January 11. Highlighting declining attendance, several traders and customers do not hide their concern, even their pessimism. The management of Carrefour Market in Martinique puts forward its explanations.
After Cultura and La Foirfouille, it is the turn of the Carrefour Market to lower the curtain this Saturday, January 11. Located opposite the supermarket, a clothing and accessories store will do the same in a few days.
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©Mike Irasque
For this regular at Carrefour Market, it is a feeling of regret that dominates, because he came there almost every day. Challenged by these successive closures, this customer wonders more broadly, about the future of the shopping center itself.
“The city is not living, it is dying. Every day there is a store that closes. There is a real lack of attractiveness“, he laments.
For this other customer, the closure of the supermarket comes as a total surprise. “I’m shocked to see that this supermarket is going to close.“, she says. “Most often, when I came here, there was always a line, it was full of customers.” underlines this other passer-by; “I wasn’t aware of this closure, I don’t understand why it’s closing.”
Although she says she does not know the reasons for these curtains being lowered, this clothing store manager does not hide her concern.
This really worries me because there is the shop opposite the supermarket. I don’t know what the problem is, it remains to be seen why they are closing but it is very worrying. For us, in this store, it’s not really ideal, but we’re holding on. It’s just the start of the sales, so we’re still waiting and trying to hold on.
A merchant from the Cour Perrinon
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©Mike Irasque
For the manager of the store which will soon close, the causes of the cessation of activity are clear. So much so that he lists them in one go. “Purchasing power, shopping center attendance, insecurity and paid parking which is always full“he emphasizes, “so people are frustrated and don’t come.”
When we ask this merchant if he is optimistic about the future of the other stores in the center, the answer bursts out: “no way.”
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©Mike Irasque
And when asked what makes him so pessimistic, the man is laconic: “you just have to look at the place, you can see it…”.
For Chantal Brassard, the director of the shopping center and property manager of the Duval Group, owner of the Cour Perrinon walls, these successive closures of stores in recent months “have different causes.” The manager adds that the Duval Group will speak out in the media on these subjects next February.
Concerning the closure of the Carrefour Market, François-Xavier Dongar, the director of the brand in Martinique, describes this decision as “difficile” for the SAFO Group, the owner of the said brand in the territory, but made imperative in view of certain realities.
We were forced to make this decision. On the one hand due to the consequent loss of attractiveness of the city center of Fort-de-France, in favor of the surrounding shopping centers. And secondly, as the city loses its attractiveness, the Perrinon shopping center generates less “customer traffic”, which inevitably has an impact on the store’s sales.
François-Xavier Dongar(director of the Carrefour Market brand in Martinique)
Referring to the abuses that targeted other Carrefour Markets on the island last October, François-Xavier Dongar then underlines the consequences of this violence. “Our brand suffered heavy losses during these events.“, explains the manager, “and these losses inevitably have an impact on the entire operation of the brand.”
In addition, according to François-Xavier Dongar, “20 to 25 direct jobs” were involved in the operation of the Carrefour Market at the Perrinon shopping center. The management of the SAFO Group has not yet commented in the media on the professional future of these employees.
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