Rue du Commerce is a French retail company, a key player in the French e-commerce sector. The site was founded in 1999 by Patrick Jacquemin and Gauthier Picquart. Initially specializing in computer and electronic products, the company expanded its offerings in 2007 and now offers over 3 million products for sale in the categories of home and personal equipment (home, garden, DIY, and fashion). Rue du Commerce operates exclusively online and competes directly with traditional retailers.
The company delivers to customers in France, Belgium, and Luxembourg. It achieved a turnover of â¬251.2 million in 2019.
Since 2011, the group has regularly changed ownership, being successively acquired by Altarea in November 2011, the Carrefour Group in January 2016, ShopInvest in April 2020, and finally by the in April 2024.
Rue du Commerce was co-founded in August 1999 by Patrick Jacquemin and Gauthier Picquart. To create âÂÂRue du Commerce,â the co-founders were inspired by Amazon, the classified ads site Figaro Classifieds|Classified, and the auction site eBay.
In June 2006, the after-sales service obtained ISO 9001 certification (quality management system), becoming the first French website to obtain this label.
In March 2009, Rue du Commerce acquired its competitors Top Achat and Clust from .
In November 2011, Rue du Commerce was acquired by Altarea Cogedim through a friendly takeover, while the company was generating a business volume of â¬420 million and a turnover of â¬316 million.
In 2014, Rue du Commerce employed 373 people and launched a marketplace powered by Mirakl.
In January 2016, Rue du Commerce was acquired by the Carrefour Group, the French leader in retail, for an estimated value between â¬20 and â¬30 million. Following this acquisition, Rue du Commerce replaced Carrefour's online sales site, Carrefour Online.
In 2001, Rue du Commerce developed the NetEcho association with three partners: Houra|Houra.fr, ChateauOnline.com, and TravelPrice.fr, to reassure their respective customers and raise awareness of the precautions to take online to protect against fraud.