France’s largest food retailers have set aside their traditional rivalries to oppose proposed legislation they say could weaken their ability to negotiate prices with multinational consumer goods manufacturers and ultimately raise costs for shoppers.
In a rare joint initiative, five major retail groups — Carrefour, E.Leclerc, Intermarché, Coopérative U and Auchan Retail — have united through the Federation of Commerce and Distribution (FCD) to warn lawmakers against measures that would limit retailers’ negotiating power.
Among the most vocal supporters of the campaign is Alexandre Bompard, who argues that preserving retailers’ ability to negotiate with large multinational suppliers is essential to protecting French consumers’ purchasing power.
According to Bompard, the debate follows what retailers describe as “unacceptable conclusions” from a recent Senate report and the emergence of a new legislative proposal that would further regulate commercial negotiations between distributors and major consumer goods companies.
Retailers argue that the proposed changes could reduce competition in annual pricing discussions and make it more difficult for supermarket chains to secure lower prices from suppliers. They contend that any weakening of negotiations would ultimately be reflected in higher shelf prices.
To support their case, the five retailers conducted a study based on a basket of 12 well-known branded products commonly purchased by French households. The analysis compared the prices consumers currently pay after negotiations with suppliers against the initial prices requested by manufacturers before negotiations took place.
The findings, according to the retailers, were significant.
They claim that without retailer negotiations since 2021, the basket would cost 37% more today. The products currently retail for an average of €52.12, but would have reached €71.49 without negotiated discounts — a difference of nearly €20 per shopping basket.
The retailers also emphasize that the products included in the analysis are exclusively national branded goods and are not linked to agricultural products, a distinction intended to separate the debate from ongoing discussions about farm incomes and agricultural supply chains.
The campaign marks an unusual moment of unity within the French retail sector. Competition between the country’s largest supermarket groups is typically intense, particularly on pricing and market share. Yet executives say the stakes have become larger than individual commercial interests.
As part of the initiative, the findings will be displayed in stores operated by all five retailers and promoted through national and regional media campaigns. The objective is to raise public awareness of what the sector views as a direct threat to household purchasing power.
For Bompard and his counterparts, the message is straightforward: restricting retailers’ ability to negotiate prices with multinational manufacturers risks increasing the cost of everyday products for millions of consumers.
At a time when inflation and purchasing power remain among the primary concerns of French households, the country’s leading retailers are seeking to convince policymakers that preserving commercial negotiation is not merely a business issue but a consumer issue as well.
The coming parliamentary debate is expected to determine whether that argument resonates with lawmakers.