“Here’s a year when annual negotiations will go smoothly”, has never been said by anyone in the last 10 years or so…
Announced with great importance during a television news broadcast at the end of August, French Government is presenting its flagship measure for protecting consumer purchasing power: a change in the timetable applicable to commercial negotiations.
By bringing forward the timetable for negotiations, French government wants to ensure that the raw materials price cuts seen for several months now can be felt on the shelves and benefit French consumers as quickly as possible.
It was against this backdrop that, on September 27, French government presented a new bill to adapt the legal provisions applicable to commercial negotiations.
Initially intended to apply only to “large” suppliers with sales in excess of 150 million euros, or 1 billion euros if the company’s accounts have been consolidated or combined, the bill was substantially modified when it went before the French National Assembly on October 9.
The new timetable will apply to all agreements concluded with suppliers of fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) – with the exception of those concluded with a pharmacy or a group of dispensing pharmacists.
A distinction will have to be made, however, according to the suppliers’ annual sales in France in their last financial year.
- For suppliers with sales of less than 350 million euros in France in their last financial year: agreements for 2024 must be signed by December 31, 2023 at the latest, and take effect by January 1, 2024 at the latest;
Suppliers will have to send their terms and conditions to distributors no later than 2 months before the December 31, 2023 deadline, i.e. by October 31, 2023 at the latest. - For suppliers with sales of 350 million euros or more in France in their last financial year: agreements for 2024 must be signed by January 15, 2024 at the latest, and take effect by January 16, 2024 at the latest;
Suppliers must send their terms and conditions to distributors no later than 2 months before the January 15, 2024 deadline, i.e. by November 15, 2023 at the latest.The distributor has fifteen days from receipt of the general terms and conditions to either give explicit and detailed reasons, in writing, for rejecting them or, where applicable, the provisions of the general terms and conditions that it wishes to submit to negotiation, or to notify its acceptance.These provisions are of public order, which means that the parties cannot derogate from them.This text, which profoundly alters the usual timetable, must now be examined and voted on by the Senate, which is scheduled for October 23.
To be continued…
