Résultat de la recherche
La conquête des clients: les magasins Gonseth et la Suisse occidentale (1920-1960)
La présente thèse traite des chaînes de magasins. Le but est de comprendre comment ces entreprises ont cherché à conquérir les clients (ou consommateurs) des petites villes et des villages, territoires inexplorés de l’histoire du commerce de détail et de la consommation. La notion de « conquête des clients » désigne deux activités fondamentales du commerce de détail. La première est de mettre les marchandises à la disposition des consommateurs : c’est la fonction principale du secteur, selon les économistes. La seconde consiste à capter ces consommateurs. Capter, selon la définition de Franck Cochoy, c’est tenter « d’avoir prise, d’attirer vers soi, de garder ce ou ceux que l’on a attiré(s) »1. La période considérée court de 1920 à 1960 : ces années voient le développement des chaînes dans les petites localités suisses, et permettent d’aborder la conquête des clients dans des contextes économiques variés, de crise, de guerre et d’abondance. L’ouvrage se base principalement sur l’étude des archives de la société Gonset, active dans la partie occidentale du pays. Il ne s’agit cependant pas seulement d’accumuler des connaissances sur ce détaillant helvétique et ses concurrents. L’objectif est aussi d’enrichir l’histoire du commerce de détail, l’histoire de la consommation et la sociologie économique grâce à l’étude du cas suisse. Ce pays, en effet, est un cadre privilégié pour appréhender la conquête des clients hors des grandes villes : son réseau urbain se compose principalement de petites villes et de villages. 1. COCHOY Franck, « La captation des publics entre dispositifs et dispositions, ou le petit Chaperon rouge revisité », in: COCHOY Franck (éd.), La captation des publics. C’est pour mieux te séduire, mon client, Toulouse, Presses universitaires du Mirail, 2004 (Socio-logiques), p. 12. This thesis, which is entitled The conquest of customers. The Gonset chain store company and Western Switzerland (1920-1960), deals with chain stores. Its goal is to understand how these firms have endeavoured to conquer the customers (or consumers) of small towns and villages, unexplored territories of the history of retail trade and consumption. The concept of “conquest of customers” refers to two basic activities of retail trade. The first is to put the goods at the consumers’ disposal, which is the main function of the sector, according to economists. The second is to “capt” (capter in French) these consumers. To “capt”, according to Franck Cochoy’s definition, means to “try to exert a hold over, or attract to oneself, or retain those one has attracted”2. The period under examination covers from 1920 through 1960. Those years witness a significant increase of chain stores in small Swiss communities and enable us to approach the conquest of customers in varied economic contexts, in times of crisis, of war and of abundance. This publication is mainly based on the study of Gonset Company’s archives, active in the western part of the country. However, it is not merely a matter of accumulating knowledge about this Swiss retailer and his competitors. The objective is also to enrich the history of retail trade, the history of consumption, and economic sociology thanks to the study of the Swiss case. This country, indeed, is an ideal framework to take account of the conquest of customers outside major cities: its urban network is mainly composed of small cities and villages. 2. COCHOY Franck, « A brief theory of the “captation” of publics. Understanding the market with Little Red Riding Hood », Theory, Culture & Society 24 (7‑8), 2007, p. 204.
Habitat et espace commercial. Le modèle architectural mixte des "petits grands magasins" Gonset, 1925-1970
Department stores are famous for their magnificent architecture. Their luxurious multistorey buildings totally dedicated to consumption have often been emphasized in historiography. However, such studies are heavily concentrated upon the biggest and most famous companies of the Western metropolises. This paper highlights another architectural form which was used by smaller firms in little towns and important villages. These “small department stores” combined housing and commercial space in the same buildings. This article presents a case study of Gonset, a family business that operated such stores across western Switzerland. It shows that between 1925 and 1970 the majority of Gonset’s stores included apartments. This mixed architectural form is due to three factors: legislation hindering the development of department stores and chains (1933–1945), laws protecting tenants, and Gonset’s strategy for diversifying revenue sources by leasing dwellings. This combining of housing and rental space had an impact on Gonset’s corporate identity. It conferred on the firm a sober style reminiscent of traditional shops. This style was in stark contrast with the culture of excess of big department stores.