EU Agenda for Cities – EuroCommerce views

Retail and wholesale is a vital part of the EU's social tissue by providing local jobs, from capital cities to rural areas. For many people, we offer their first job as a launch pad for career progression, not only within our sector but also moving to other sectors. We are the largest private employer, offering over 26 million jobs across the EU. Over 99% of our companies are SMEs, employing two-thirds of our workforce.

Our added value cannot be fully expressed as a contribution to GDP, as we are part of the social infrastructure and form a strong bond with citizens, providing what they need to express their character, organise fun activities and support local communities, schools and neighbourhood events. Where our presence fades, quality of life tends to decrease. Areas where we can no longer have an economically viable presence risk getting left behind as populations move to vibrant communities with more job opportunities. If our sector keeps shrinking, as it did in previous years, it will be forced to recede from smaller towns, rural areas or inner cities, increasing polarisation and reducing opportunities and quality of life in these areas. It can be said that there is retail and wholesale without cities, but there are no cities without them and their services.

We therefore, call for the EU Agenda for Cities to:

1. Prioritise work with cities and municipalities to develop an EU programme for the revitalisation of town centres, villages and rural areas, building on the #RevitaliseRetail initiative, and which places retail and wholesale at its heart. Recalling the essential role retail and wholesale plays in providing essential services to consumers during disruptions.
2. Call on Member States to provide the infrastructure and adapt their town and country planning frameworks and procedures to be more agile so it is easier and quicker to grant permits, to enable new business models to develop.
3. Improve liaison with cities ahead of legislative proposals so that a better balance between regulation and innovation gives more legal certainty and predictability to EU retailers and wholesalers to innovate, globally, nationally and locally in a business environment that enables decisions balanced with business risk.