Explore France

 

Country Overview

France is the seventh largest economy in the world and the third largest in Europe after Germany and the United Kingdom as of 2024. France is also a founding member of the European Union (EU) and a member of the G7, the G20, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and the World Trade Organization (WTO).

The country is divided into 13 metropolitan regions, of which Paris is the capital. French is the official language and the currency used is Euro (EUR).

France is among the world leaders in the agri-food, aerospace, automotive, tourism, nuclear, and luxury sectors. With at least 89 million foreign tourists a year, France is also the most visited country in the world.

France in Figures 2024:

10 largest cities : Paris, Marseille, Lyon, Toulouse, Nice, Nantes, Montpellier, Strasbourg, Bordeaux, Lille
Total area : 672,051 km2
Total population : 68,373,000
Population density : 101. 2 /km2
GDP : $2,806 billion
Unemployment rate : 7.5%

France’s telecommunications systems are highly developed. They are served by a vast network of automatic control centres linked by modern networks of fiber optic cables, coaxial cable, relay antennas for radio and television, and a system of domestic satellites; mobile telephone services are widely available and expanding and include roaming services abroad.

In 2022, 4.1 million employees were working part-time in their main job in France, representing 17.3% of all employees. 25% of them would like to work more.

Direct Selling Industry in France

Direct selling in France is evolving fast and developing the use of social networks and digital tools to continue to develop its businesses and keep up with consumer trends. Companies that have been able to adapt quickly to a fluctuating economic climate in the past two years have managed to maintain very good levels of activity and even grow. Adaptability seems to be the key to success, between evolving techniques and tools, and fundamentals such as team cohesion. Among the largest international companies with a strong presence in France are Verisure, Vorwerk, Herbalife, Younique, Nu Skin, Just, PM-International, etc.

Direct selling in France is regulated by laws and rules specific to the sector, as well as dedicated status for the self-employed. The administrative, legal and tax environment in France may seem complicated, but once you dig in, it offers many opportunities for developing a direct sales business, both as a self-employed person and for companies. This explains the large number of companies of all sizes in this sector. France is one of the few countries in the world to have set up a specific status for self-employed direct sellers (which is not compulsory), enabling people to set-up a direct selling activity with minimum administrative constraints.

The French Federation is one of the largest in the world, with over 100 member companies, and 8 full-time employees. It offers online training programmes for the member companies’ distributors. It also has the support of more than 50 partners who assist these same companies.

Reputation of direct selling in France has been growing over the last few years and is becoming much more modern. People under the age of 30 have a different vision of the activity, and no longer necessarily associate it with meetings or selling at home, but increasingly think of it as a connected activity, particularly via social networks.

It’s worth noting that a quarter of French people say they want to start or take over a business, without sacrificing too much of their personal life, in the next two years, according to a 2024 survey.

France’s ageing population should also be seen as an opportunity for the years ahead. After their careers, many retired people will be looking for ways to supplement their income, but it is also this same population that will become the customer base for many direct sales companies.

For all these reasons, setting up a direct sales business in France can be done under the best possible conditions.

France is the the second largest market in Europe after Germany with direct selling retail sales for 2022 at €4.583 billion. France ranks the 9th globally. The overall workforce is stable at 706,000 people. 80% of them are women.

Most represented product categories are:

• Home Improvement (30%)
• Household Goods and Durables (25%)
• Wellness (16%)
• Cosmetics (8%)
• Clothing and Accessories (8%)
• Home Care (7%)
• Decoration and Creative Leisure (3%)
• Telecommunications (2%)
• Publishing and Press (1%)

Sources :
The National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies
WFDSA reports
French DSA analyses and studies

…..

Written by Frédéric Billon, Executive Director of the French Direct Selling Association (FVD). Frédéric has been at this role since January 2023. Previously, he worked for Natura SAS between 2009-2018 and for Just France between 2018-2023 as their Chief Operating Officer.

 

SHARE THIS: