2023-07-19 12:45:26
Two new players in express grocery delivery, Getir and Gorillas, will soon disappear from French cities after their liquidation pronounced on Wednesday by the Paris Commercial Court.
This court decision entails the elimination of more than 1,300 jobs in France, the Turkish group Getir, owner of Gorillas since 2022, relying on delivery men hired on permanent contracts. Regarding the fate of Frichti, another French subsidiary of the Turkish group with more than 300 employees, the court’s decision had not yet been disclosed at midday.
End of “dark stores”
This is yet another setback for the sector. « quick commerce »in strong growth from 2020 then hard hit by inflation and especially affected by a regulatory change decided in March to fight against the nuisances of its warehouses – in particular the comings and goings of delivery people on scooters or bicycles coming to pick up orders.
The government then decreed that the « dark stores » – these premises where the products to be delivered are stored – were warehouses, not shops, paving the way for the town halls to regulate this activity, and even for the closure of certain sites.
Departure from French territory
The decree entered into force on July 1, but the delivery companies did not wait for this date to react: Getir and the German group Flink announced in June their intention to leave French territory, Getir France denouncing “an unfavorable contextual environment”.
“Dark stores are over”said Emmanuel Grégoire, the first deputy mayor of Paris, referring to a battle already won against “predatory capitalistic behavior”.
“Not surprised” of the judicial liquidation of Getir France and Gorillas, the employees “were just waiting for the case to be over after the roller coaster of the last few months”explains Rémy Frey, delegate to the CGT commerce of Paris. “We are all very tired”adds Arnaud Coulibaly, employee and staff representative of Gorillas.
According to lawyer Me Vincent, “a plan, worked on by the staff representation, was rendered null and void by the company, which refused to finance it at the last moment”she told AFP. “Today the question is at the level of the PSE (job safeguard plan, editor’s note) and the payment of wages”she added.
Shareholder abandonment
For Johann Tchissambou, CFDT union representative of Getir France, “Nazim Salur (the founder of Getir) does not respect his commitment made to the commercial court to pay the salaries of July 2023, (which) plunges employees into precariousness”he said in a statement.
“All over France, employees are disgusted by the insensitivity of the shareholder who abandons them so cruelly”adds the trade unionist, even though, according to him, the founder of Getir mentioned in an internal communication “a next fundraiser (which) should be validated”.
The last collection in 2022 had valued the Turkish group more than 10 billion euros. The latter then claimed to have collected 2 billion dollars since its creation in 2015. In France, the group generated in 2022 a turnover of 120.3 million euros according to an internal note to the company, of which less than half via its brands Getir and Gorillas.
International difficulties
Getir is also experiencing difficulties in other countries such as Spain, where more than 1,500 jobs are threatened by the withdrawal of the Turkish juggernaut.
The quick trade sector is not immune to new job cuts, since the Paris Commercial Court is due to examine the takeover solutions for Flink France at the end of the summer.
A joint offer between the German parent company Flink SE and Guillaume Luscan, the general manager of Flink France, was filed on Monday. It provides for the takeover of 238 employees, or only half of the current workforce.
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