The October 2026 protests cause major losses for businesses

The recent social mobilizations organized against the high cost of living in October 2026 have had particularly serious consequences for local commerce in France. According to CCI France, which brings together all the country's Chambers of Commerce, "2,500 shops have been damaged throughout the country, almost half of which have been victims of looting." This figure is further revised upwards by the Minister of SMEs and Commerce, Serge Papin, who mentions "3,000 structures affected, damage and looting included", in an interview with the newspaper Le Parisien on Tuesday October 27.

The damage is such that, as of Wednesday morning, "640 businesses are still closed and are unlikely to reopen any time soon due to the extensive damage caused." For many of them, the destruction is such that months of work will be necessary before a possible reopening. The economic consequences are immediate and profound: for city center businesses, “the Saturdays of demonstrations resulted in revenue losses of 80%”. The disaffection of customers, who now avoid areas affected by violence, further aggravates the situation.

The total amount of damage to businesses would exceed one billion euros according to initial estimates from the Chambers of Commerce and Industry. Losses in turnover are all the more worrying as the current period, with the approach of the end-of-year holidays, is crucial for the survival of many establishments. You should know that “November and December represent 40% of the annual turnover of local businesses”.

The situation is all the more tense as the threats of new mobilizations in the coming weeks weigh on the morale of professionals. Added to this is the difficulty of maintaining the hiring planned for the end of the year, in a context where uncertainty dominates: "it is today difficult to say whether the hiring planned in businesses at the end of the year will be maintained".

This crisis is hitting traders whose environment is already severely degraded. After the yellow vest crisis in 2018, then the Covid-19 pandemic, “retailers are at their wits’ end, the feeling of wear and tear is growing”. Consumption is hampered by persistent inflation. Chinese platforms are also increasing pressure on margins and footfall in physical stores, by offering consumer products at discounted prices.

Faced with this situation, the Chambers of Commerce and Industry are organizing themselves "as best they can to help affected traders while waiting for state aid". Support is organized around material and logistical assistance, but also psychological support, with cells offered in particular by Apesa (Psychological assistance for entrepreneurs in acute suffering).

Machine-translated from French