France’s ecommerce sector, worth €175.3bn in 2024, is thriving. With inflation slowing and consumer confidence showing tentative signs of recovery, 64% of French retailers expect their sales to increase over the course of 2025. Ecommerce now accounts for 11% of all retail sales.
Yet for all France’s economy has been remarkably buoyant, there are reasons for retailers to be concerned about what may lie ahead. France has a persistent budget deficit and its public debt in 2024 represented 113% of GDP. In 2027, there will be a presidential election and the centrist incumbent, Emmanuel Macron, cannot stand for a third successive term. France, so long a bastion of social democracy at the centre of the wider European project, faces the very real prospect of either Marine Le Pen or Jordan Bardella of the far-right National Rally leading the nation.
In this report, we consider both the underlying strengths of the French economy and assess its challenges. Drawing on exclusive RetailX research, we look in detail at its consumers’ preferences in such areas as the luxury market and sustainability, and profile some of France’s most innovative retailers, including Carrefour, Galeries Lafayette and Louis Vuitton.
Key takeaways
• As the International Monetary Fund has reported, France has demonstrated resilience. Its labour market remains relatively strong and its consumers are relatively confident.
• Online retail is growing. Its €175.3bn value in 2024 was a record and represented an increase of around 10% year-on-year.
• France’s population is highly urbanised, which simplifies organising the logistics that underpin online retail. Urbanisation also gives retailers the opportunity to be innovative in their delivery offerings.
• Marketplaces have huge reach in France, with 35% of those who buy online shopping with marketplace once a month. The equivalent figures for retailers and brands are, respectively, 26% and 13%.
• French luxury brands are globally recognised. Domestically, French consumers value the luxury sector because it offers a combination of quality, long-term value and high resale prices for vintage items, customer service and a strong focus on sustainability.
Key statistics
• France’s inflation in 2025 has been at around 1.3%, below the European Central Bank’s 2% target for the eurozone.
• 62% of consumers shop online more than once a month, most likely on a marketplace.
• Clothes and accessories are the items most likely to be bought online. According to ConsumerX research, more than 60% of French consumers who shop online said they had bought items in these categories in the previous 12 months.
• 52.2% of French online shoppers are not prepared to pay extra to return unwanted products.
• 75.5% of French online shoppers think that retailers should do more to minimise packaging waste.
• In ConsumerX surveys conducted over 2024 and 2025, 56.8% of French consumers planned to maintain their current levels of spending on luxury goods, but 34.4% planned to spend less.
• Two in five French consumers would consider avoiding shopping again with a retailer that sent an item in oversized packaging.
