A
number of trade union members and employees stormed into the luxury Paris store La
Samaritaine, shutting it down when protests erupted on Friday, December 23.
Earlier, they had also held a protest on Thursday.

The La
Samaritaine is a luxury department store owned by Moët Hennessy
Louis Vuitton, commonly known as LVHM. The store is located in the first
arrondissement in Paris, directly
in front of the Quai du Louvre and the rue de la Monnaie. It is close to the
Pont-Neuf metro station. The exact address of the luxury house is 9 R. de la Monnaie, 75001 Paris, France.

Also Read | Protestors storm La Samaritaine store in Paris demanding wage increase: Watch

The La
Samaritaine started out as a small clothing shop and later expanded to what
became a series of store buildings with a total of 90 different departments.
La
Samaritaine re-opened in June last year after an expensive facelift and
renovation that was carried out over 16 years.

Around 200 to 300 protesters were involved in the protest,
including union members and employees as reported by the General Confederation
of Labor (CGT).

Also Read | Paris shooting that killed 3 from Kurdish community leads to riots: Watch

“La Samaritaine is a symbolic place representing wealth.
A lot of employees here cannot allow themselves to buy what they sell,”
Amar Lagha, from the hard-left CGT union, told AFP.  

In a statement, the store’s management said, “Almost all
of the demonstrators were not employees of la Samaritaine. For security
reasons, clients and personnel were evacuated.”

Also Read | How France plans to strengthen protection of Kurdish people after Paris shooting

The protesters could be seen standing among the displays of
luxury products even after management shut the store in the morning.

In the past few weeks, France has been hit by a series of
strikes in different sectors of the economy as employees demanded pay hikes due
to the annual inflation of around 6 percent.