Brussels, 05/07/2010 (Agence Europe) - On Monday 5 July, the European Commission adopted a report identifying problems affecting, or which are likely to affect (from an internal market perspective), economic, social or environmental performances (for example, in terms of innovation, competitiveness, productivity, employment, the fight against poverty and social inclusion, as well as climate change and ethical and social responsibility) of companies active in the trade and distribution sectors (also called “retail trade”). Retail trade is a key sector for the European economy: the distribution sector represents 4.2% of GDP (Gross Domestic Product) in the EU, it accounts for 20% of SMEs in the Union and employs 17.4 million people.
The Commission is calling on all stakeholders to give their opinions before 10 September 2010 on the conclusions contained in this report. In an autumn communication, the Commission will present measures on relaunching the internal market, which are likely to bring responses to the problems identified.
Retail trade includes many different forms of outlet (shops, e-commerce, open markets etc) and formats (ranging from small shops to hypermarkets), products (food, non-food, prescribed and unprescribed medicines …), legal structures, (self-employed, franchises, joint ventures …), locations (urban/rural, town centres/suburbs …). The report emphasises the trade in food, given the economic weight that the sector has. This complexity cannot be reduced to a simple dichotomy between “small businesses/large-scale distribution”. The strategy of the major groups over recent years has been dominated by diversification, ranging from small-scale neighbourhood or village stores to hypermarkets, by way of medium-sized shop areas such as supermarkets and “hard discount” stores, explains the Commission.
The Commission aims to identify measures that could be taken to “improve the way in which the internal market functions in the retail trade sector”, while respecting the principles of subsidiarity and proportionality. This involves helping companies active in the retail trade and distribution sector to better use the freedoms of the internal market, in an effort to encourage the development of their services and promote innovation, whilst respecting the objectives linked to economic, social and regional cohesion and the protection of workers, consumers and the environment, the report explains. The Commission also asserts that smart, sustainable and inclusive trade and distribution can make a direct contribution to the success of the EUROPE 2020 strategy.
Access to a varied and sustainable supply. The following problems have been identified as having affected the performance of distributors in terms of accessibility (lack of cohesion between the location of shops compared to existing home locations and means of transport) for all EU citizens to a varied range of competitive retail services respecting the requirements of sustainable development: - a lack of efficiency and diversity across commercial planning rules together with malfunctioning of the commercial property market have an adverse impact on where retailers choose to establish shops and access for consumers; - insufficient development of electronic commerce in the internal market, as a result of a series of obstacles (cross-border postal services, means of payment, poorly functioning systems of redress, etc); - under-development of commercial communications and independent information services (for example, internet price comparison sites, including cross-border ones, or comparative tests of products and services).
Investment capacities. The following problems have been identified as affecting the optimum performance of operators, particularly with regard to their capacity for investment and innovation, especially in the area of product quality and services provided: - a lack of rules or efficient implementation of rules governing unfair trade practices and contractual relations between the different actors in the supply chain; - a lack of quality systems transparency (as well as difficulties in their cross-border use).
Labour productivity. The following problems have been identified as affecting conditions at work and labour productivity, as well as employment levels and competitiveness in the trade and distribution sector: - differences in working conditions generated by divergences in rules on the right to work and collective agreements applicable to trade and distribution; - the negative impact of the informal economy on working conditions; - a lack of consumer information on the social performance of companies in the trade and distribution sector; - a discrepancy between the needs of companies and the competencies of employees in the trade and distribution sector.
Sustainability. The following problems have been identified as potentially preventing the transition towards a more sustainable trade and distribution sector; - high energy consumption, significant amounts of production waste, high volume of goods being transported and urban congestion; - insufficient awareness regarding the environmental costs in the trade and distribution supply chain (logistics, shop energy efficiency, marketing and communications …), particularly in the absence of sufficient incentive measures and common environmental evaluation and impact method for products and services sold (in keeping with the life cycle approach). (L.C./transl.fl)