11 euros for a loaf of bread, 7 euros for a packet of tissues… A site compares prices between Martinique and mainland France

A packet of sandwich bread costs 11 euros in Martinique, compared to 1.45 euros in mainland France: “In Martinique, you pay for your shopping with your blood”, concludes one Internet user. Comments on the Internet are indeed pouring in under the screenshots of a website that has been widely shared since the start of the violence in Martinique. Behind the site “Kiprix” is in reality Robeen Siméon, 28, a young website developer based in the Scoelcher district, very close to Fort-de-France, who set up this comparator in less than four weeks.

“Kiprix” aims to be an online price comparison site that displays the prices charged in a Leclerc store in Martinique and compares them to those of stores in mainland France.

11€ for sandwich bread lol in Martinique you pay for your shopping with your blood it’s crazy anyway https://t.co/nr8Z0PvPVX

— BARBEU⭐️x3 (@BarbenoirTmg) September 18, 2024

In total, more than 8,000 products are referenced on the site and “the prices are completely taken from the websites”assures Robeen. Concerning the methodology, the prices recorded correspond for Martinique to the prices of the products sold on the Leclerc Drive website in Lamentin, the French prices come from the Leclerc Drive sites located in Toulouse and Montpellier, explains the developer.

The approach of the one who describes himself as “geek” is explained on the site: “The objectives of Kiprix.com are as follows: to provide reliable information on product prices in Martinique, to monitor the evolution of prices in large-scale distribution in Martinique, and to compare prices with mainland France.”

“Every person in Martinique is concerned by this high cost of living, and this is my way of doing my bit.”

Robeen Simeon, creator of “Kiprix”

to franceinfo

Contacted by franceinfo, Robeen specifies that his site is therefore aimed at those who find it of interest, “whether it’s politicians to be able to support their words, or locals to be able to choose where to buy the products”he explains. This young Martinican says that he has been facing a case of conscience for some time. “I am someone who travels a lot and there is a real issue about whether I want to stay in Martinique with such an expensive life, because it is almost unlivable. For young people, it is complicated to be able to create assets, the cost of living is so expensive”, he laments.

In the meantime, the website is “very well received”assures Robeen Siméon who plans to develop her comparator. “We are going to add other brands. We are also potentially going to add Guadeloupe, Reunion Island, Guyana because we have requests every day.”