caterers and event professionals are calling for the return of “whatever the cost”

On the kitchen workbench of BS Caterers in Gennevilliers (Hauts-de-Seine), white hat and black gloves, Laurent Colas is developing new recipes. These days, the chef hears the news: a 1,600-covered contract was canceled overnight due to the surge in Covid-19 cases. “The problem is that we suffer, we have no choice, he confides. Of course that scares us very much. “

Everything was planned right down to the menu. The suppliers had to be canceled. The manager of this family business, Guillaume Bouberka, had to put aside more than 10% of his services planned until the end of the year. Since November 25, it has received eight to nine cancellations, which represents “60 to 61,000 euros”.

“We have had cancellations from municipalities and ministries to limit groupings with emails canceling receptions, seated meals, cocktails, meaning ‘sanitary reason’.”

Guillaume Bouberka, manager of BS Caterers

to franceinfo

Indeed, the jars in companies at the end of the year are not “recommended”, according to the Minister of Labor Élisabeth Borne. Guillaume Bouberka asks the government for the return of “whatever the cost”, “let us know where we can go”, he blurted out. “You lose a lot of turnover and on the other hand, you have to keep paying.”

There are those who organize events for large companies. At Moon Event, in the Paris region, Lucie Guérin is piloting a project costing several tens of thousands of euros. A project that was to take place in early January, postponed to March. “We must review our copy, regrets the young woman, it takes time, money in quotes since we rework and it is not remunerated. When we have a deferral like that, we have our fixed fees. “

One in three clients of the agency chose to postpone their event, with the uncertainty related to the health context. The balance is fragile for the founder of the agency, Romain Richard. “This new variant worries us a lot, from January-February, we do not know where we are going., the boss is alarmed. We no longer have new requests, that is to say that on face-to-face events, we no longer receive anything, no more briefs. We will find ourselves in difficulty very quickly if the aid does not resume. “

In the event that the health situation worsens, the Minister of the Economy Bruno Le Maire says he is ready to take stock soon with the sector.