Behind this English word, which could be translated as “dark shops”, hide warehouses often installed in old stores, in the heart of the city, sometimes in the basement. They serve as a depot for ultra-fast delivery groups, such as Uber, Gorillas… These stores are filled with goods, pasta, cakes, hygiene products but are closed to the general public. Only the delivery people come to help themselves, who then bring you, in ten minutes, the aperitif biscuits or the toothpaste that you have ordered. These “dark stores” are now considered warehouses, rather than businesses.
>> “Dark stores”: four questions about the government proposal that worries the town hall of Paris
The “dark stores” are a real subject of tension. In large cities, such as Paris, Nantes or Lyon, elected officials want to close them. The reasons ? Nuisances for local residents, delivery people often being on two wheels, and competition from local shops. Above all, the mayors are standing up because, for the moment, there is a legal vacuum: they do not have the possibility of regulating or even prohibiting these structures.
The government therefore seeks to regulate, but without totally prohibiting. He fixes a decree: if the warehouses are equipped with a withdrawal point accessible to the public, with defined opening hours, then they could be considered as businesses… and the mayors would have more easily their say.
The executive is looking for a way to satisfy local elected officials and support this new consumer trend, still marginal but which could be called upon to develop. According to Bercy, Paris officially has 60 “dark stores”. A number that could increase in the years to come.