Back-to-school shopping is likely to weigh heavily on the wallets of French households, but the authorities intend to check that professionals are not taking advantage of the inflationary climate to inflate prices. This Thursday morning, the Minister Delegate for Trade announced that the Directorate General for Competition, Consumption and the Repression of Fraud (DGCCRF) was going to “investigate the price increases for school supplies”.
“As the start of the new school year approaches [I am] always vigilant about protecting the purchasing power of the French”, also underlined Olivia Grégoire on Twitter. “We are going to see if there has been a particular effort on the part of the brands. Carrefour and Franprix have already placed supplies in their anti-inflation basket, ”says the minister’s entourage to Figaro. The “promotional efforts” will also be scrutinized by DGCCRF agents, who will not only check the invoices of the brands, but also the labels displayed in stores.
This announcement comes as retail professionals have already announced in early July that the prices of school supplies should increase “by 2 to 3%” on the shelves at the start of the school year. The increase even amounts to “10% if we go back 18 months”, underlined last May the president of the Musketeers, Thierry Cotillard. A statement shared by the UFC Que-Choisir, which on Tuesday noted an increase of 10% in one year, in July, “on pens, notebooks, rulers and other materials”. “Stationery products suffered the highest inflation, at 14%”, mentions the association on its site.
If the purchases of supplies were made a year ago by large retailers, the consequences of the war in Ukraine were still present in negotiations with suppliers. It remains to be seen how the bills will evolve in the coming weeks: “We cannot rule out that there may be a drop in prices for these products in August”, notes Olivia Grégoire’s cabinet. What (a little) reduce the expenses of the French on their return from vacation.
