<\/p>\n
\n\tPARIS \u2014 The Avenue des Champs-\u00c9lys\u00e9es is gearing up for the holidays with all-new Christmas lights and the return of its traditional market, in the hopes of bringing back visitors deterred by images of looted stores and boarded-up windows during recent protests against student conditions and the high cost of living.<\/p>\n
\n\tCate Blanchett is scheduled to switch on the 32 miles of garlands wound across 400 trees in a ceremony on Nov. 22, the first under new Paris Mayor Emmanuel Gr\u00e9goire.<\/p>\n
\n\tMarc-Antoine Jamet, president of the Comit\u00e9 des Champs-\u00c9lys\u00e9es, is counting on the annual attraction to jumpstart foot traffic, which has been impacted by the fallout from the demonstrations on Oct. 17 and 24.<\/p>\n
\n\tThe organization, which groups 192 members including luxury brands, high street chains, sporting goods firms, restaurants and hotels, is working closely with Paris police chief Patrice Faure and private security firms to guarantee the safety of visitors, he said.<\/p>\n
\n\tLast year\u2019s Christmas illuminations drew 14.3 million people between Nov. 16 and Jan. 3, with a single-day record of 530,000 visitors on Dec. 27. \u201cOf course, we\u2019re hoping to set another record this year,\u201d Jamet told a news conference on Wednesday.<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\tCate Blanchett<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tGreg Williams\/Courtesy of Comit\u00e9 des Champs-Elys\u00e9es<\/p>\n
\n\tAnnual footfall on the Champs-\u00c9lys\u00e9es rose 10 percent in 2025 to 73 million visitors. In the first nine months of 2026, the famed thoroughfare has welcomed 49 million people, impacted by the conflict in the Middle East and the social unrest in France.<\/p>\n
\n\tIt has hosted more high-profile events than ever before, including the visit of Pope Leo XIV in September, the Viva Tech fair, the Chinese New Year parade and the arrival of the Tour de France, not to mention the annual Bastille Day military parade.<\/p>\n
\n\tThe Christmas market will return for the first time in 10 years with a new operator, event planner 2A Organisation. In addition to 200 wooden chalets, it will feature kid-friendly attractions like an ice-skating rink and a merry-go-round.<\/p>\n
\n\tWhile long-term partner Blachere Illumination remains in charge of the lighting, this year\u2019s display is all-new. The five-minute sound-and-music show, set to Max Richter\u2019s reinterpretation of Vivaldi\u2019s \u201cFour Seasons,\u201d is scheduled every quarter of an hour.<\/p>\n
\n\tAnd the avenue is preparing for the opening of several stores, including the arrival of Alo Yoga and the reopening of Swarovski and Pierre Herm\u00e9 in new locations \u2014 not to mention Louis Vuitton, which is renovating a mammoth building for its new retailtainment flagship.<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\tThe poster for the 2026 Champs-\u00c9lys\u00e9es Christmas illuminations.<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tCourtesy of Comit\u00e9 des Champs-Elys\u00e9es<\/p>\n
\n\tIn the wake of rioting on Oct. 17 during which several of its boutiques were vandalized, the Comit\u00e9 des Champs-\u00c9lys\u00e9es had called for urgent government action.<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cThe Champs-\u00c9lys\u00e9es cannot become a battleground week after week,\u201d it said in a statement on Oct. 18. \u201cOur freedoms are under threat; our businesses have been destroyed; our investments wiped out; our employees traumatized; our customers deterred. Our property, our people and our initiatives must be protected \u2014 like those of all French citizens \u2014 by the public authorities entrusted with that responsibility.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\tMore than 1,100 stores nationwide were looted, trashed or torched that day, while almost 1,000 suffered lighter damage, according to preliminary figures released by the French Chambers of Commerce and Industry. It said revenues in city centers fell by up to 80 percent on protest days, while think tank IFRAP estimated the total damages at 1.1 billion euros.<\/p>\n
\n\tBut after a relatively peaceful second weekend of protests, Jamet struck a conciliatory tone, putting the emphasis on cooperation with the police prefecture and the other four organizations grouping high-end retailers in Paris: the Comit\u00e9 Saint-Honor\u00e9, Comit\u00e9 Montaigne, Comit\u00e9 Haussmann and Comit\u00e9 Vend\u00f4me.<\/p>\n
\n\tIn an interview with WWD, the executive explained why he\u2019s banking on \u201cclear-eyed vigilance and measured optimism\u201d to draw back crowds to the city\u2019s premier shopping hub.<\/p>\n
\n\tWWD: How have the two Saturdays of protest impacted foot traffic on the Avenue des Champs-\u00c9lys\u00e9es in October?<\/p>\n
\n\tMarc-Antoine Jamet: There have been four phases so far this year. The first was a period of very strong momentum, from January to March, which came to a halt when the war between Iran, Israel and the United States broke out. We saw a decline, then a recovery over the summer, particularly in some categories. Hotels were very pleased, and we started September on a strong note. It\u2019s clear that we\u2019ve now hit a stumbling block, but we believe Paris can recover, thanks to its resilience and appeal.<\/p>\n
\n\tClearly, there is a drop in foot traffic. But we believe we have two months to restore the situation, and that our holiday attractions are strong enough to bring people back.<\/p>\n
\n\tWWD: When did you join forces with the four other Paris retail committees?<\/p>\n
\n\tM.-A.J.: A year ago. The initial focus was urban planning and modernization. Then came dialogue with public authorities, with a debate among all the candidates for mayor of Paris, which was a very important moment.<\/p>\n
\n\tNow we\u2019re seeing a shared approach to security: the same standards should apply on Boulevard Haussmann, Rue Saint-Honor\u00e9, Place Vend\u00f4me, Avenue Montaigne and the Champs-\u00c9lys\u00e9es. The chief of police has agreed. He has established a shared security channel that includes him, his chief aide and the heads of the five committees.<\/p>\n
\n\tSo, while we\u2019re understandably concerned, we\u2019re also encouraged by the exchanges we\u2019re having with the group, the meetings we\u2019ve had and the work that has been done on the ground.<\/p>\n
\n\tWe hope that resilience and common sense, and the three things we have called for \u2014 calm, dialogue and an end to violence \u2014 will be heard.<\/p>\n
\n\tWWD: What further cooperation is planned with the police?<\/p>\n
\n\tM.-A.J.: The chief of police wants to meet us in the coming days and bring together a large number of retailers to hear their views.<\/p>\n
\n\tOn our side, we\u2019re standing behind his message and ensuring the five committees act in concertation: on opening and closing hours, on barriers and hoardings, and in our dealings with public authorities and the police.<\/p>\n
\n\tWWD: You mentioned there are some issues on which you disagree with the chief of police. What are they?<\/p>\n
\n\tM.-A.J.: The main issue is how often the avenue is closed to traffic for official visits, sometimes in addition to events such as football-club celebrations. We think the avenue is closed too often. As retailers, we\u2019re affected by closures without compensation. That is the main point of disagreement between us and the chief of police: the notice periods, the way closures are handled and compensation.<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\tMarc-Antoine Jamet<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tSylvain Bachelot\/Courtesy of Comit\u00e9 des Champs-Elys\u00e9es<\/p>\n
\n\tWWD: Have you been able to measure the economic impact of the protests, whether from damages or reduced opening hours?<\/p>\n
\n\tM.-A.J.: We haven\u2019t measured it, but the impact is real. The issue is not so much that some stores closed, because many chose to stay open and did so without any issues. There were fewer incidents on Oct. 24 than on Oct. 17. The problem is that fewer people are coming.<\/p>\n
\n\tWWD: So you can\u2019t quantify the impact yet?<\/p>\n
\n\tM.-A.J.: We saw, for example, that business on the Sunday after Oct. 17 largely made up for the losses incurred because of the protests. We don\u2019t have the figures yet, but I would say there were more people than on a typical Sunday.<\/p>\n
\n\tThat\u2019s why we believe in resilience, calm and dialogue. We can see that when a peaceful Sunday follows a Saturday like that, the City of Paris does an extraordinary job of cleaning up. On parts of Avenue Montaigne and the Champs-\u00c9lys\u00e9es, it looked as though nothing had happened. That also shows there was less looting and damage than some have suggested. There were highly visible incidents \u2014 construction barriers, fires and so on \u2014 but no apartment-building lobbies were set alight on the Champs-\u00c9lys\u00e9es.<\/p>\n
\n\tI\u2019m optimistic. I call it clear-eyed vigilance and measured optimism. Clear-eyed vigilance means focusing on security and hoping things calm down. Measured optimism means looking at that Sunday, when more people came out. It means believing that what we\u2019ve developed over the past five years around the holiday season will continue to work. And it means believing that calm and dialogue will return.<\/p>\n
\n\tWWD: What about the Christmas market? Will there be additional security measures or limited opening hours?<\/p>\n
\n\tM.-A.J.: We are recruiting 26 security staff to patrol the Christmas market around the clock. The market has been given the green light by the police prefecture, which has determined that it meets all the necessary security requirements.<\/p>\n
\n\tWWD: Despite the broader context, do you still hope the Christmas lights will draw record numbers this year?<\/p>\n
\n\tM.-A.J.: Despite the war in the Middle East, real pressure on people\u2019s purchasing power and fuel prices, we\u2019ve managed to attract around 50 million people in roughly eight months. So what\u2019s going to prevail? Anxiety, uncertainty and panic? Or the longer-term trend, which clearly points to a strong recovery for the Champs-\u00c9lys\u00e9es and the return of Parisians and residents of the wider Paris region?<\/p>\n
\n\tI hope the second trend prevails, and I\u2019m doing what I can to make that happen: putting on a beautiful light show and a superb Christmas market.<\/p>\n
#Champs\u00c9lys\u00e9es #Banks #Cate #Blanchett #Holiday #Lights #Draw #Crowds<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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