The masks sold very well in supermarkets where they went on sale on Monday, according to several large distributors. At Casino, “the masks in the different brands have gone very well”. “There are already some ruptures in some stores,” said a spokesperson.
“The stocks were exhausted during the day,” added the Lidl group, which put on sale 5 million masks on Monday in its 1,550 supermarkets. But for Casino as for Lidl, these breaks are “temporary”. “Supermarkets will again be supplied with single-use masks from Monday, May 11,” said a spokesperson for the German group.
Leclerc announces “total availability the week of May 11” and “continuous replenishment”. “The French do not need to rush, the quantities are large and will be quite sufficient to meet the needs of all,” said the spokeswoman.
“Cost price”
The selling price of masks has been the subject of debate since the announcement Friday of a cap of 95 cents for the surgical mask, a price considered far too high by some. Carrefour, Leclerc and Casino insist on the fact that on their shelves, the sale of masks is done well at “cost price” – that is to say well below the ceiling of 95 cents.
To this provision around the price are added rules for “responsible distribution”. At Carrefour, for example, the masks “are not put on the shelves, but available in cases in stores, sold for less than 60 centimes in lots of 5 or 10. Customers cannot buy more than two lots each”. In the Lidl and Leclerc stores, sales at the cash desk or at reception are also essential.
The signs of the large distribution had caused a controversy last week by communicating on the millions of masks they had ordered and sell since May 4. These important figures made jump some, which denounced supposed “hidden stocks”. An accusation which the large distribution had defended, denouncing a “null” controversy, according to the boss of the Leclerc group, and “insane” according to that of Système U.
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