Saint-Louis Festival in Sète: derivative products attract locals and tourists

The tourist office is selling t-shirts with the image of the poster for the 280th edition of the Saint-Louis. Midi Libre – GUILLAUME CROS

Since the beginning of August, traders have been selling posters and t-shirts with the image of the traditional Saint-Louis. The peak of sales was expected for the weekend of August 24 and 25, right in the middle of the festivities that bring the singular island to life.

The Saint-Louis poster, painted by Madeleine Sergio, was unveiled to the public for the first time on July 31. A week later, the merchandise was already adorning the windows of some downtown boutiques. Only three businesses have a sales permit granted by the city hall: the Paul-Valéry paper mill, the Presse Singulière, and the tourist office.

At the paper mill, white T-shirts with printed posters are stacked behind the counter. “We go from 6 years to XXL. We also have tank tops”, comments manager Nathalie Valentin. She placed a total order of 680 outfits this year, 80 more than last year. She estimates that the stock will be exhausted, even if she notes a lower enthusiasm than the two previous years. "There was the release of Covid which caused an explosion in sales, and last year with the poster which was highly acclaimed."

Profitable until out of stock

Saint-Louis 2023 had been fruitful for retailers. They all agree that customers had bought massively, more than expected. As proof, the tourist office was out of stock of posters on the day of the launch of the Saint-Louis. It had been forced to carry out an emergency restocking. This year, “we are well on our way to restocking stocks again”, anticipates an employee.

Since the shelving, the tourist office has frequently received calls from "poster and t-shirt collectors" coming from all over. At the stationery store, they are aware that this craze "goes beyond the simple framework of the t-shirt".

"I can't, I have Saint-Louis"

But, the merchants do not limit themselves to the products authorized by the city hall. Along the Royal Canal, some have prepared Saint-Louis in their own way. In a souvenir shop, a window has been temporarily installed with shields and paintings of jousters inside. The sale of these items is tolerated by the City on the sole condition that they do not explicitly refer to the Saint-Louis poster. The saleswoman states in passing that temporary tattoos “I can't, I have Saint-Louis” are offered.

The 2024 version of René Le Bail's personalized shield. DR – DR

At the Passage du Dauphin, René Le Bail exhibits his favorite works in his stand: shields with the Saint-Louis poster printed on them. The idea first came to this former jouster in 2015. Since then, he has put his personalized shields on sale in every Saint-Louis. It was only in 2023, with the poster of Vivi Navarro, that the craze took off: “It was a huge hit!” The 120 pavois made were all sold, most of them before the start of the Saint-Louis. For the 2024 edition, he produced 150 pavois which are selling, let's say, like hotcakes. René Le Bail is betting that they will all be sold by the end of the Saint-Louis.