Each year, the city of Paris awards a prize for the best baguette. The results are widely covered by the city’s press and the locals eagerly await the verdict, ready to brag if the winner happens to be their local boulangerie. The popularity of the baguette competition shows just how serious Parisians are about their food shopping. Ask any group of Parisians about the best butcher, greengrocer or fishmonger in the city and a long debate on the merits of each neighbourhood retailer inevitably ensues.

There are approximately 61,000 retailers in the heart of the French capital, serving 2.2 million residents. Paris is home to 312 butchers and 174 cheesemongers, which works out at about 16 butchers and nine cheesemongers per arrondissement. Imagine a small London or New York neighbourhood with eight specialist cheese shops.

Also unique to Paris is the absence of large supermarkets. When he was mayor of Paris, Jacques Chirac passed a law banning them in order to protect small retailers. Since then, hundreds of mini-marts have flourished among the specialist, family-owned businesses. Franprix is the largest, with 265 outlets.

Protecting neighbourhood shopping districts has always been a priority for the municipal government. In 1983, a corporation called Semaest (60 per cent of which belongs to the city) was created to foster the economic development and commercial diversity of various parts of Paris. Among other things, it buys empty stores in areas needing a boost and then rents them out to small independent retailers. Part of its mission is also to promote artisans and professions based around a specific craft.

“We have an amazing retail diversity in each neighbourhood,” says Sarah Lerfel, co-owner of Colette, the concept store. “And what’s rare is that we have so many specialist shops such as framers or gilders. Some of them have closed because of the department stores but I’m thrilled that there are still places that only sell doorbells or light switches.”

Paris’s reputation as a retail destination comes with one stereotype Parisians have been unable to shrug off: the snottiness of service. Although some would say it’s part of the Gallic charm, the attitude one gets when being served is only redeemed by retailers’ product knowledge, which often exceeds that of other cities.

Sophie Andrieux, who owns La Mercerie de Charonne, a haberdashery in the 11th arrondissement, is one of these very knowledgeable retailers. She left a career in marketing in the chemical industry almost 10 years ago to take over this local shop. Her clientele is varied and includes stylists, fashion students, tapestry makers and housewives. The hours are long, but Andrieux finds that she loves being part of a community. “Little by little, you create a network. People come in to buy something and ask me if I know a good seamstress or have some good addresses to share. I pass on the info depending on who needs what.”

Paris’s luxury craft industry is also going through a revival, particularly around the Palais-Royal, which houses famous family-run establishments including glove-maker Maison Fabre and milliner Maison Michel, both of which have been supplying haute couture heavyweights for decades. “Maison Fabre used to do collections for Saint Laurent and now it has small showrooms where you can pick up a pair of bespoke gloves,” says Franck Bonnet, whose family owns Maison Bonnet, which has been making spectacles by hand since the 1930s and has a shop in the Palais-Royal. “Now you have access to the finest French tradition. It hasn’t always been easy for these old houses. You have to know how to adapt.”

Paris’s abundance of specialist food shops and excellent craftsmanship has always been part of the city’s make-up, as has its illustrious fashion past and designer shopping districts such as the Avenue Montaigne or Faubourg Saint-Honoré. It isn’t, however, particularly known for its edgy boutiques or counter-culture attitude to fashion. “For me, New York is the main source of inspiration in terms of independent retail,” says Clarent Dehlouz, co-owner of French Trotters, one of Paris’s most interesting menswear shops. “There’s lots of interesting things in Paris but I feel that there’s still a lot to do. It’s a good situation to be in, though. It’s motivating.”

Jean-Charles Carrarini, who co-owns Rose Bakery and has outlets on both sides of the Channel, thinks Parisians may be too conservative, afraid to rock the boat. “I think one of the biggest problems in Paris is that when someone has a good idea, they do it too small. No one sees the bigger picture.”

But, according to Carrarini, change is afoot with a new generation of thirty-something retailers who have travelled or lived abroad, such as Clarent Dehlouz, who used to be a photographer. “It doesn’t mean they bring ideas back and just do them. They put them in that unique French style. Now that’s ­interesting.”