Cécile Désaunay
Research Director at Futuribles
In recent years, France has witnessed a gradual shift away from the consumer society and toward what we term the deconsumption society. This emerging trend, particularly evident in the slowing consumption of goods, results from a number of socio-cultural and economic factors: an aging population, the saturation of material needs, a rise in forced frugality, and growing questioning of the consumer society. The potential for deconsumption to take on increasing importance over the medium to long term is, however, contingent on a number of variables and choices that are currently impossible to determine, such as the extent to which large corporates decide to adopt practices rooted in the circular and functional economies.
