Urban Exploration - The logistics platform
We received photos from a traveler and compiled them into a historical summary.
Status of the site: Demolished (Work began in November 2023).
This is a visit to a former logistics platform that became fleetingly famous in the world of urbex. This is the Vachaud Distribution site, located in Saint-Césaire, Nîmes.
The facility was a logistics hub specializing in the distribution of tableware and glassware. Their letterhead read: table arts, household arts, home decoration—a spectrum much broader than just dishes. They imported vast quantities of goods, redistributing them to retailers across various regions. Notably, the factory features a curious and beautiful set of railway tracks for bulk rail deliveries, alongside numerous truck docks for transporters.
Inside the building, there is mention of a showroom and a telephone labeled "permanent expo." One can safely assume the tableware was displayed in a factory outlet store.
From Growth to Liquidation
The warehouse reportedly opened in 1960 and once employed up to 220 people. The founder, Jean Vachaud, passed away in 2013; we have no information regarding Henri Vachaud, who was mentioned in the headers of all correspondence in the 1980s. The factory was taken over by a major group in 2004: Arc International. It was later acquired by another group, Mutares, in 2012, which made the decision to close the facility almost immediately, in June 2013. At the time of closure, 68 employees were laid off for economic reasons.
The Faces Behind the Distribution
The former employees of this company included: (I have maintained the list as provided in your text for the record) BINNENDIJK Olivier (Management), DERAISIN Jacques, BENSA Paule, JEAN Sophie, ENGEL Patricia, FAVROU Nathalie, DONAIN Ludivine, PIONTKOWSKI Nathalie, VIGNE Mylène, HUBAC Cindy, ALMERAS Marie-Hélène, FLANDIN Marie-Ange, ROBERT Caroline, MARTEL Paulette, DE POLO Richard, LOMBARDI François, GRENECHE Michel, BOULET Jacques, MICHELOT Marie-Antoinette, MOYNE-BRESSAND Sabine, TRINTIGNAN Michel, SERAFINI Christian, ROIG Elisabeth, ROBERT Jacky, LHERMITTE Carole, ALIAGA Joséphine, AGUILHON Patrice, MOULIN Marielle, VARIN Bruno, CLUZEL Rémi, BOUDET Sandrine, LAURANS Didier, BELLUIRE Alain, BECAMEL Jean-Philippe, PEYTAVIN Daniel, ROULE Michel, NOUGARET Guy, MARTINEZ André, FERNANDEZ Didier, FAES Jean-Pierre, MATHIEU Jean-Marc, MICHELOT François, ARTAUD Cédric, BRUN Guy, CERDAN Joseph, CHAMBELLAND Michel, DE SAN NICOLAS Jean-Michel, BACCAM Heng, BONILLO Bruno, CABREILHAC Daniel, INSULLA Richard, ROCHE Franck, BLAISE Jean-Marc, CHAMBROLAIN Adrien, TUPIN Patrick, VAN EENOOGHE Michel.
Miles of Racks and Morning Birds
Today, the premises are mostly immensely empty. However, one can observe insane quantities of shelving. These are called "racks," or palletiers in French, though the latter is less common. I tried to imagine how many miles of shelving there were!
I was on-site very, very early in the morning. Well... I couldn't sleep, so there you go. In the early hours, the place is incredibly bathed in the diffuse sound of hundreds of seagulls. A real treat! Some have even shared photos showing that wild boars have taken over the site!
Miles of shelving, infinite lengths... here is the exploration of a famous abandoned logistics platform. Tucked away in a corner of an industrial zone, it is actually quite a discreet place. Within these vast expanses of racks, they used to store tableware: plates, glasses, napkins, and more. Goods arrived in massive volumes by the trainload. They were sorted, packaged, and then sent back out by truck. Docks, trains, trucks, boxes, pallet jacks, 220 workers: it was nothing less than a human anthill!
On every exploration, I sleep outdoors—by choice, for the joy of those dozens, hundreds of wonderful, marvelous stars. This time, I’m camped out in a pleasant grassy field right next to some houses in Caveirac. At six in the morning, in the house next door, I hear a little baby crying; he’s hungry. It brings back memories. So, I prepare a good, strong espresso (not for the baby, mind you!), while the sun is still hidden.
A few moments later, at the industrial zone, it is still pitch black. The company gates are locked, and I don't realize yet that the entrance is actually staring me in the face. Instead, I find myself climbing over a mangled fence tangled with brambles, an unstable mess hanging over deep holes—it’s completely ridiculous! Inside the factory, it’s dark. Naturally... so, I must wait.
Sitting in a massive hall deserted for ten years, I hear the grand ballet of the seagulls. There are thousands of them, screaming, calling out to one another, their voices echoing. It’s magnificent, like gigantic sound waves of wild seagulls. They chatter away before they all "head off to work." Some people mention having seen wild boars at the train platform. We are in the middle of a city, and yet it’s all so magical. A limitless happiness.
Wandering through the shelves, I try for a moment to imagine just how many there are; the scale is enormous. Between a thousand shelves and a thousand seagulls, in the immense solitude of the "too-early-morning," I tell myself that life holds some very curious joys!
