The 18th edition of Siec, held on 19-20 September concurrently with Paris Retail Week, proudly championed its theme: Retail Is Back. The event gathered 4,450 participants, 100 exhibitors and 1,600 retailers.
Siec overview

Siec 2023: A Vibrant, Business-Boosting Edition

Siec, an event from the Fédération des Acteurs du Commerce dans les Territoires and organised by Comexposium, reaffirms its status as an essential annual business event for European leaders in commercial and retail real estate. The latest edition brought together some 100 exhibitors, 1,600 brand representatives and 4,450 participants! The importance of retail as a driver for urban and local attractivity was at the heart conversations, and was underscored in her address by France’s Minister Delegate in charge of SMEs, Commerce, Crafts and Tourism, Olivia Grégoire, who came to meet exhibitors mere days before the vote on the Green Industry bill.

‘It’s also thanks to feedback from economic actors and the dedication of local elected officials, chief among them are Mayors, that I, as a Minister who took office just a year ago today, have resolved to take action and effect change in the transformation of retail and peri-urban areas,’ Olivia Grégoire commented as she was introduced to the mixed-use redevelopment project for the NorthEastern Flats of Chartres (city gateway), in the presence of the Mayor of Chartres, Jean-Pierre Gorges.
 

‘The 2023 edition of Siec has been an opportunity for two days of quality engagement between actors of the retail real estate industry. Brands, property companies, investors, local authorities and companies involved in the retail real estate market all joined the event, showing optimism and a capacity for innovation that signals promising evolutions in the industry’s future! Today more than ever, active collaboration between the State, local authorities and retail professionals appears to be key for urban transformation, and our Federation has a pivotal role to play in bridging the gap between them,’ explained Christophe Noël, General Delegate of the Fédération des Acteurs du Commerce dans les Territoires.

‘Exhibitors who contributed to this edition’s success are the best ambassadors to evidence the revival of retail. Close to 1,000 business meetings have been set up over the course of two days and we are thrilled with the success this edition of Siec has met,’ added Juana Moreno, Director of Siec

Exhibitors on their experience

‘Siec is a woderful place to meet current and potential clients, especially those based outside the Paris area. There’s a great energy going on here, with a platform that is very much business

oriented, but not overly formal, so still conducive to conversation,’ said Tanguy Berthelé, Business Manager of Klépierre France.

‘As anticipated, we are very pleased with this latest edition of Siec. We were able to set up more than 60 meetings that will eventually lead to inspiring projects,’ said Fabrice Deygas, President of Altiplano Consulting, a company specialising in leisure real estate.

A major win for our first edition as exhibitors at the show! We were more than successful in developing our retail business, with 80 meetings overall, 20 of which extremely promising.

Joining Siec was an opportunity to get off to a great start with new contacts, which will allow us to reflect on the future of the charging services we offer,’ said Émilien Boulidard, Head of Marketing and Communication at Easy Charge, a VINCI Group company dedicated to electric mobility.

‘We are very happy with this year’s edition. Many promising contacts with project developers who have clear goals for 2024. Of course, our big news is the CNIT shopping centre, with the new extension set to open in April 2024 and more than 70% of units commercialized so far,’ said Dominique Hautbois, Retail France General Manager at Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield. During the Awards Ceremony of the Fédération des Acteurs du Commerce dans les Territoires, the Group was presented with the Multi-Purpose Project Trophy for its recently opened Les Ateliers Gaîté, and also won the Local Marketing Initiative Trophy for Westfield Euralille and its event Champollion, La Voie des Hiéroglyphes organised with the Louvre-Lens — all evidence of the success of the Siec 2023.

Studies show the vitality of the retail sector and its importance in everyday life across France

This 18th edition has also been an opportunity to share with the retail community several studies that highlight the importance of physical and local retail (Havas/CSA paper for Siec & Paris Retail Week), including a paper by CODATA that demonstrates the positive outcome of the Action Cœur de Ville (ACV) programme on commercial vacancies. Looking at the trends, the top 3 ACV cities ranked by the highest rate of commercial vacancy shrinkage between 2018 and 2022 are: Calais (-7.7 points), Bagnols-sur-Cèze (-7.0 points), and Vierzon (-6.7 points).*

These studies offered further insight, complementing an extremely rich programme, with more than 20 conferences and workshops curated by a dedicated editorial committee that sought to provide professionals with inspiring content to rethink retail development and approach it in a way that is both sustainable and relevant.


Seven Trophies awarded by the Fédération des Acteurs du Commerce dans les Territoires proving that retail is back.

Category: Creation or Extension/Redesign of a Retail or Multi-Purpose Space

  • Retail Space Redesign Trophy: Hammerson for Les 3 Fontaines, in CergyPontoise.
  • Multi-Purpose Project Trophy: Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield for Les Ateliers Gaîté.
  • Special Prize for Bord’eau Village, by Société de la Tour Eiffel.


Category: Local CSR and Marketing Initiatives

  • Local CSR Initiative Trophy: Frey Shopping Promenade Cœur Alsace for Le Social Market, a 1,500-sqm socially conscious store dedicated to supporting actors of the community-oriented economy (second-hand goods and labour market integration).
  • Local Marketing Initiative Trophy: Westfield Euralille for the exhibition Champollion, La Voie des Hiéroglyphes in partnership with Louvre-Lens.


Category: Action Cœur de Ville Programme

  • Trophy for a public realm development project contributing to the commercial attractivity of an ACV city: Arpajon (Essonne) for its overall city-centre development strategy. 
  • Trophy for the redevelopment of a building/brownfield contributing to the commercial attractivity of an ACV city: Limoges (Haute-Vienne) for its Halles Centrales project.

Two essential events for European leaders of the commercial and retail real estate market!

Siec and Paris Retail Week, two leading retail trade shows, coincide to create a unique platform uniting the whole retail community. The two businessboosting events offer support to exhibitors and participants, helping them bring their projects to life and providing insight into current trends!

 

See you back at Paris Expo Porte de Versailles the 22 & 23 May 2024!

 

About Siec:

Siec, an event from the Fédération du Commerce et des Territoires and organised by Comexposium, is an international trade show dedicated to retail real estate. This essential and much-anticipated annual business event is recognized by the entire French and European industry community. It provides a unique and exceptional opportunity for a yearly meeting to rethink commercial planning in urban areas and develop sustainable approaches.