Shopping in Paris
First, there are no bargains in Paris. The dollar has taken care of that. Even wine is getting expensive in the shops.
Secondly, French bureaucracy and work rules insure that customer service is,at best, different. Stores are never open when you want them to be. Most close one or more days a week. In addition, the smaller shops all close for 2-3 hours for Lunch. The "grand magasins" (primarily Samartaine, Au Printemps, Le Bon Marche, Galleries Lafayette and BHV) don't close for lunch. Also, the French seem to have an aversion to touching money. In most large and small stores there is a separate "Caisse" where you pay for your purchase and then return to the "vendeuse" to pick it up. It's sort of like Canal Street in NY. If you want to get a tax certificate at one of the "Grand Magasins" you have to go to the office on different floor.
On the other hand, it can be pretty wonderful, too. There is so much variety in the products offered. You don't just see the same things you do at home. When we were traveling around the South I commented on how hard it was to find anything typical or representative of the region. All the stores were the same ones you find everywhere (Limited, William Sonoma, Origins, you know the ones). Because the French government makes an effort to save local manufacturers, and because the people prefer to buy local products, there is a plethora of small stores featuring different products. This is especially true for housewares, clothing, books in addition to, of course, food. I know this is highly inefficient and drives up costs and prices - but it is also fun. We walk 2-3 miles everyday and it's nice to browse in the stores along the way. We don't buy much because we would have to carry it back (except for scarves and pens) home.
The other thing that strikes me about the shops is the specialization. Tabacs are licensed to sell tobacco and it can't be sold anywhere else. This gives rise to an interesting quandary. The government is officially discouraging smoking through higher taxes and no smoking areas. As a licensed monopoly, the Tabacs are complaining that the government has a responsibility to make sure they make they make a living and are threatening to strike! 'Pharmacies' are another example. Only they can sell drugs (which includes all OTC drugs like aspirin). No drug products are displayed on self service shelves. You must ask the Pharmacist for everything. Other examples of specialist stores include Honey, Olive Oil (this is where 'Olivier & Co.' began), tea and soap. Yesterday, we went into a cooking oil store that had every imaginable type of oil (olive, walnut, mushroom, pecan, you get the idea). In addition they had all the products that go with oil - mortar and pestle, heaters, filters, cans and bottles, etc. Christina was like a child at Christmas! She reminded me how difficult it had been to find walnut oil this summer for our gourmet night. I on the other hand, was perfectly responsible when we passed pen and knife stores - buying only what I absolutely needed!
The shops are definitely one of the things I'll miss when we get home.
7:44:52 AM 
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