At the Nîmes market halls, customers and stallholders extend the festivities to their plates on this Christmas Day

The Duprat fishmonger, established for two years in the market halls, prepares the last baskets of shellfish for the Christmas meals. Midi Libre – E.A.

Ce mercredi 25 décembre, les clients sont venus chercher leurs derniers produits pour leur repas de fêtes. Midi Libre – E.A.

This Wednesday, December 25, Christmas Day, a few customers were finishing their last purchases at the stalls of the covered market.

“Meat, fish, shellfish, everything comes from the covered market. Except the wine!”, smiles Jean-Marc, a loyal customer who did his shopping for the Christmas meal entirely at the covered market in Nîmes. This Wednesday, December 25, Christmas Day, before his sister Dominique left for Orléans, they came to do their last purchases at Karine Daniel's of “La pitchoune de Nîmes”. “In Orléans, they sell us cod with mash like brandade, it's nothing like that”, explains the Orléans woman. In her suitcases, several pots will leave with her.

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“Our customers let loose”

Like them, some customers came to complete their holiday menu with the stallholders. “I was missing the bread and the mandarins, and for the rest we anticipated”, specifies Frédéric. And there is no question of depriving oneself for this festive period. “In my family, we don't give each other gifts. So our budget is spent on food”, he adds.

A pleasure that the stallholders have also noticed. “From November to mid-December, it was catastrophic. There is of course inflation, but the work around the market halls also played a huge role. But since December 20, it has been exceptional. It took time, but for the holidays, our customers let loose”, observes Karine Daniel from “La pitchoune de Nîmes”. A little further on, Antonin Busquet from Maison Busquet even talks about a “solidarity petition” in the face of recent news that has affected the market halls, including the uncertainty over the future of stallholders by 2028. “We see that customers are coming in greater numbers. They may be thinking that by buying more often, it will save us. It's human solidarity”, he explains.

A great economic year

A great economic year that has not yet said its last word, since once Christmas dinner is over, comes Christmas Eve. “It's the last week and many people, who may have been holding back until now, are going to let loose on this last festive meal. It's a way to treat yourself after a complicated year for purchasing power. So for us, it's going to be another big week”, predicts David from the Bruguier delicatessen. A significant turnover, especially since for this stallholder, the months that follow are synonymous with closures. “I am one of the three stallholders who will have to close from February for the work on the escalators at La Coupole”, he confides. David, like the other stallholders at the Nîmes market halls, are counting on their customers to end this year 2024 on a nice positive note…