Orange with 6Medias, published on Saturday January 07, 2023 at 4:08 p.m.
Banned since March 2022, patio heaters are gradually being replaced by heating pads designed by two French women, reports Le Figaro, Saturday January 7.
The ban on heaters on the terraces of bars, cafes and restaurants in March 2022 for ecological reasons was enough to put some people off going out in the middle of winter. But a start-up with the unequivocal name of Cüchot, founded by two Lille women, has imagined a heating pad to overcome this inconvenience, reports Le Figaro, Saturday January 7.
An ecological aberration and financial abyss for some restaurateurs, terrace heating disappeared from French cities in March 2022. To guarantee the comfort of fans of terrace cafés, Pascale Nollet, co-founder of Cüchot, advocates the heating pad, which is “50 times less energy than a radiant heater”, according to her. After two years of research and development to find the right formula, the project was launched in November 2022 and found takers. Several restaurants spread between Lille, Paris and Marseille have already adopted the heating pad, which works with a battery tucked into a back pocket and whose temperature can be adjusted.
A device that plays on the limits of the law
Despite the energy gain announced by the Lille start-up compared to radiant heaters, which are now prohibited, the device does not satisfy all parties, starting with the law, which stipulates that “the use on public property of heating or air conditioning systems that consume energy and operate outdoors is prohibited”, without making any distinction. To which Pascale Nollet replies that the “product is not classified as a heater in CE standards”thus exempting it from this legislation.
On the side of the town hall of Paris, the device does not seem to irritate unduly, it also announces “that there will be no hunting or verbalization regarding these devices.” Emmanuel Grégoire, assistant in charge of urbanization at the town hall of Paris, kicks in by affirming that this question “is not within the regulatory authority of the city.” While waiting to flood the whole of France and extend its product range to office chairs, Pascale Nollet sees a promising future for its heating pad: “We will order: a coffee and a Cüchot please!”
