European retail and wholesale association EuroCommerce has called for urgent measures to enhance the competitiveness and resilience of the industry by addressing unfair competition from third-country platforms and traders.
In a meeting with European Commission (EC) executive vice-president Stéphane Séjourné, the group highlighted the need for a level playing field against non-EU competitors.
EuroCommerce director general Christel Delberghe raised concerns that businesses within the EU are at a competitive disadvantage.
She pointed out that their non-EU rivals frequently disregard the standards and regulations enforced by the European Union.
Delberghe said: "We need stronger enforcement, a swift customs and Consumer Protection Cooperation (CPC) regulation reform, and an EU-wide framework for coordination."
EuroCommerce president Juan Manuel Morales underscored the sector's importance, citing 26 million direct jobs and five million businesses, mostly small and medium-sized enterprises, as crucial to the daily needs of consumers and businesses.
"We are transforming rapidly," Morales said, "but we face mounting challenges - from geopolitical tensions and tariff wars to a flood of parcels containing noncompliant products undermining fair competition."
The association praised the Single Market Strategy but called for swifter action in removing regulatory barriers and addressing issues such as territorial supply constraints and national price controls that skew competition.
It also advocated for stronger enforcement against infringements that compromise the Single Market and potentially prompt other member states to adopt similar restrictive measures.
The association said: “We ask the EU Commission and member states to take decisive action to make Territorial Supply Constraints history, by making better use of competition enforcement measures and declaring as not acceptable practices that artificially segment the Single Market and prevent the circulation of products across borders.”
EuroCommerce said it supports the EC's “renewed focus on competitiveness and investment” and called for greater acknowledgment of the sector's diversity and specific requirements.
The organisation is pushing for regulatory simplification and solutions to tackle market fragmentation, which hinders investment.
In conclusion, EuroCommerce conveyed a readiness to back the EU's economic and green goals, emphasising the necessity for smarter regulation, a functional Single Market, and robust enforcement.
