Thursday 9 November 2017

Costco comes to France...

 

A) Read the article: An American Mastodon in Paris (The Atlantic) (note that there is a translation of the article in the "comments" section of this blog post!)

B) Answer the following questions on the article from The Atlantic:
  1. Why do the French like Jerry Lewis, Burger King and "anything très Brooklyn" do you think?
  2. Why do the French like less Uber, Netflix and Skippy peanut butter do you think?
  3. Was Le Parisien pleased Costco opened its first warehouse in France recently?
  4. Do you think Doug Stephens is right?
  5. How different from a North American Costco is the one in Paris?
  6. What kind of people shop at the Paris Costco?
  7. In what ways is French life "segregated"?
  8. Why is the Paris Costco so popular do you think?
  9. Would you shop at the French Costco (why/not)?
  10. Will Costco open more warehouse stores in France do you think (why/not)?
C) Carry out research on The Atlantic magazine (history, types of readers, influence, political bias, etc.).

D) Carry out research on Costco (YOU MUST TAKE NOTES!)

You need to find out:
  • who the people concerned by Costco's expansion are;
  • what "flows" of goods and finance are involved;
  • what types of networks are needed;
  • what issues are raised (such as the possible impact on French consumer habits.

E) List the reasons for and against the following proposal in preparation for a debate in class (be sure to use Costco as an example!):

"The French state should limit the number of foreign retail stores in France."

3 comments:

  1. THE ATLANTIC – WASHINGTON (traduction du texte du COURRIER INTERNATIONAL publié le 20/10/2017)
    Il est parfois difficile de prédire quelles exportations américaines vont réussir à percer en France. Jerry Lewis, Burger King et tout ce qui fait très Brooklyn suscitent un OUI retentissant. Uber, Netflix et le beurre de cacahuète Skippy, un accueil beaucoup plus mitigé. Jusqu’en juin dernier, date à laquelle Costco a ouvert son premier magasin français en banlieue de Paris, la chaîne d’entrepôts semblait condamnée à la seconde catégorie. À l’automne 2016, Le Parisien l’avait présentée comme un “mastodonte américain” et s’était demandé si les Français souhaitaient vraiment des tablettes de chocolat de cinq kilos et des pizzas d’un demi-mètre de diamètre.
    La culture française “est beaucoup moins basée sur l’abondance et l’excès”, m’a expliqué Doug Stephens, le fondateur de la société de conseil Retail Prophet. “Les Français achètent pour consommer, et non pour posséder.” D’où ma surprise, deux semaines après l’ouverture du magasin en France, de trouver l’établissement bondé. “C’est quoi ça ?” marmonne mon chauffeur de taxi, sidéré. L’entrepôt est presque plein, alors que la France entre dans la saison des congés d’été, une période où l’activité des commerces de détail est au plus bas.
    Exactement le même qu’en Amérique
    Un vigile en costume noir contrôle les cartes de membre et indique aux nouveaux venus le coin des inscriptions, où plus de cent personnes attendent pour payer les 36 euros d’adhésion annuelle. Dix jours après l’ouverture, le magasin compte 12 000 membres.
    Je demande à Pascale Charbonneau, la directrice adjointe de l’entrepôt, si elle peut me faire visiter les lieux. Costco a fait venir de ses magasins québécois des francophones comme elle pour lancer les opérations. Elle me regarde d’un air perplexe. Ai-je déjà été dans un Costco ? Oui. “C’est exactement le même”, me lance-t-elle avant de filer.
    Le magasin est de fait très similaire aux autres, hormis quelques modifications pour l’adapter au continent européen. Le jour de ma visite, les clients s’arrachent des produits dont le nom a été spécialement étudié pour exprimer l’authenticité du Nouveau Monde, tels les Real American Super Buns (cuits au Pays-Bas) et la bière Shipyard American IPA (brassée en Grande-Bretagne). Ils font preuve d’un plus grand discernement avec les spécialités françaises : d’énormes barquettes de charcuterie sortent des vitrines réfrigérées, mais le champagne maison – Kirkland Signature Brut – reste inchangé.
    Le melting-pot des clients
    La caractéristique majeure de cette cathédrale fluorescente est sa capacité inquiétante à inciter les clients à se comporter comme des Américains. Alors que la vie française est très souvent cloisonnée, les nouveaux membres de Costco forment un véritable melting-pot : des mères en hijab, des retraités voûtés, des femmes aux coiffes africaines. Des gamins courent en criant autour d’une maison pour enfants. Un employé qui distribue des échantillons de fromage lance une plaisanterie et un client éclate de rire. Un bambin rayonne de joie dans l’aile des confiseries. Jamais en France je n’ai vu autant de manifestations d’émotions en public.
    Dans le fond de l’entrepôt, je tombe sur une bande d’adolescents noirs et arabes en maillot de foot en train de pousser un chariot d’une taille impressionnante. Le leader du groupe tient son portable en l’air et informe par vidéochat un jeune absent des bonnes affaires à réaliser. “Quarante bouteilles, 3,79 euros”, crie-t-il. Un visage flou donne son feu vert et les jeunes commencent à charger des packs d’eau Kirkland dans le chariot.
    Pourquoi sont-ils venus ? “C’est pas cher !” répond l’un d’eux en français. Lui et ses copains détalent ensuite en faisant zigzaguer leur chariot dans l’allée suivante. Au coin, le dernier de la bande fait marche arrière et, en frottant son pouce contre son index, hurle avec un fort accent français : “Money !”
    David Gauvey Herbert

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  2. My answers to questions (1) to (5):

    1) Why do the French like Jerry Lewis, Burger King and "anything très Brooklyn" do you think?
    The French have had a love-hate relationship with the culture of the USA since the Second World War. American music, cinema and TV, eating and consumer habits, clothing styles, etc., have been widely adopted by the French (as has the use of English). The French seem to recognize Jerry Lewis’s comic genius (unlike most Americans!), love Burger King because it’s not MacDonald’s (so people can be snobbish about going there?), and the “Brooklyn” style seems to appeal because it is expensive and chic (again, snob value). Most French people love American culture (just look at the success of Disneyland Paris!) but, at the same time, many resent feeling that their home-grown culture is being “invaded” by other cultures.

    2) Why do the French like less Uber, Netflix and Skippy peanut butter do you think?
    Uber has had a bad press (people who work for it work long hours for little pay) so French people (though they use Uber taxis) see it as an example of the ultra-liberal system (so aggressive, exploitative and not good). Netflix has had little success (so far) in France because of the French cultural exception rules which are intended to boost French audio-visual production (and “protect” it from too many foreign films and music, notably from America). Plus, the French see themselves as the torchbearers of the 7th Art (Netflix is seen as probably poor quality because from America…). Skippy peanut butter is little known and it is just not tasty enough for “sophisticated” French palates (it is seen as “malbouffe”, i.e. poor quality food stuff)! Most French people (to varying degrees) fear the Americanisation of French culture and defend traditional French cultural practices (though, in practice, they end up, over time, adopting many things American, usually with a little irony).

    3) Was Le Parisien pleased Costco opened its first warehouse in France recently?
    Costco is described as a “mastodon” by Le Parisien (i.e. like an oversized and dangerous creature) so it is rather wary Costco has opened a warehouse store in Paris. It questions if the French are really interested in very large American-sized food portions (it considers the French to be selective in its shopping and eating habits?). Le Parisien reflects the prejudices of many of its readers…

    4) Do you think Doug Stephens is right?
    Doug Stephens is right about how some (most?) French consumers see their purchasing and eating habits (they consider that they usually only buy things they need and buy quality products as opposed to large quantities of poor quality cheap products). The French are, however, famous for luxury products (especially food), so Stephens is not entirely correct (i.e. the French sometimes do buy for “abundance and excess” and to show off that they do “have”). I think French consumer practices are changing though (as Costco’s success would tend to show); people are starting to buy bulk quantities of food (of poorer quality) because incomes are going down (and obesity up). It is only those that have the means to be choosy about what they buy that can simply “buy to consume”.

    5) How different from a North American Costco is the one in Paris?
    It is not, according to the assistant warehouse manager, with “American” type products hyped as such (though not made in the USA). However, concessions have been made to local eating habits (“Continental tweaks”); for example: charcuterie and Champagne are on sale. The enormous Costco store is designed to incite shoppers to be more “American” in the way they buy goods, i.e. to buy in large quantities (and to seek value for money, not necessarily quality); people are probably influenced by the garish advertising, promotions, giving out of samples, the excitement of the (novel) experience (a child has an “atomic meltdown” because of the huge quantities of candy, etc.).

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  3. My answers to questions (6) to (10):

    6) What kind of people shop at the Paris Costco?
    The shop is described as a “melting pot” of people: young people, elderly people, and people from ethnic minorities. They have in common the fact of being, generally, poor.

    7) In what ways is French life "segregated"?
    French society is ethnically divided, suffers from class division (working class vs bourgeois), segregated by income (the wealthy few and the numerous poor), and there is also a generational divide, a religious versus non-religious opposition, exclusion of foreigners, etc. These social divisions are reflected in consumer habits; the less wealthy will inevitably buy in discount stores (“hard-discount” as it is called in French), the wealthier in more up-market stores. Costco seems to have succeeded in bringing together different communities (who, for the most part, have limited income).

    8) Why is the Paris Costco so popular do you think?
    Because it is cheap and (apparently) fun! Its popularity shows that there is a demand for shopping of this type (despite what people like Doug Stephens say).

    9) Would you shop at the French Costco (why/not)?
    No! I like top quality (organic) foods that are tasty and nutritious and made in France. I dislike mass-produced, poor quality (poor-tasting) foods (made in factories where workers are exploited) that are bad for one’s health (too much sugar and salt and cheap ingredients full of chemical products, GMOs and pesticides, etc.), transported over vast distances (which causes harm to the environment). I do not want to get any fatter, so I choose to eat less and make my own meals (no ready-made microwavable meals). Also, I loathe shopping in huge department stores; they are impersonal and ugly and the workers are underpaid and work in awful conditions. These stores are just money-spinners for the shareholders of (American) multinationals! You do not have to be rich (I am not) to eat correctly; being poor is no excuse for buying poor quality (cheap) foods.

    10) Will Costco open more warehouse stores in France do you think (why/not)?
    Probably… The Government needs urgently to educate people to eat better (not buy huge quantities of unhealthy food) and to make school canteens free and serve only organic products (which would improve young people’s health as well as boost the nation’s agriculture).

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