Faced with a much higher price increase, thousands of Belgians are now shopping on the French side. This Saturday, from Maubeuge to Dunkirk via Valenciennes, Roncq, Nieppe and Bergues, we went to meet them. “Road-trip” in the new cross-border consumer spots…
It’s barely 8:30 this Saturday morning and Nicolas and Stéphanie have just found a space in the parking lot of the hyper Carrefour de Maubeuge, the first stage of our journey. Here, nearly one car in three is this Saturday registered Outre-Quiévrain. The engine is hot. The couple have just driven an hour from Charleroi.
«This is the second time we’ve come here to do our shopping, explains Nicholas, and we are on our way to come back“. No matter the border, no matter the distance, when it comes to preserving your wallet: “Our two hour drive (for round trip) are largely offset by the savings we make. For a trolley at 150 or 200€ here, it would be well over 250€ in Belgium. And we take the opportunity to fill up with fuel, which is also much more economical.».
→ Find here the complete report of our colleagues from La Voix du Nord