The self-defence market - France

The size of the global self-defense market reached $2.9 billion in 2021, and is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 5.4% to 2030. In France, the number of firearms is estimated at 15 million, i.e. almost one weapon for every 4 individuals (this figure also includes unregistered weapons derived from illegal trafficking). The main suppliers of defense and self-defense equipment known to date are as follows: SD Equipements, Maxiprotec, Securicount, Baumel, Ducatillon, Armurerie Loisir, and gunsmiths in general. According to Yonathan Malet, founder of the AntiAgression website, the self-defense market has been growing by 20% a year for the past 4 years. At the very start of the lock-in, he even recorded a 20-30% increase in sales over a two-week period. the growth in reported incidents of sexual violence in particular is exponential in France, doubling between 2013 and 2021. But this growth in reported incidents does not correspond equally to the growth in sexual violence actually perpetrated. Indeed, after the liberation of speech that followed the Weinstein affair and the #MeToo movement, victims have more often revealed the facts than they did in the past. This increase in the popularity of self-defense products therefore seems to stem more from greater media coverage and awareness of violence and insecurity, than from an increase in that insecurity itself, according to Slate.