Paris business owners take stock as riots sweep the city: 'They'd taken everything'

A wine store in Paris was emptied of all its products during riots on Saturday.

Nathan Rennolds/Business Insider Paris erupted as protests turned to riots and masked looters ransacked stores on Saturday.

Small business owners took stock of what they'd lost on Sunday.

"When I got back, they'd taken everything," one store owner told Business Insider.

"When I got back, they'd taken everything." That's what one shopkeeper in Paris told me as she cleared debris from her store after major cost-of-living protests turned violent across parts of France on Saturday.

Chaotic scenes unfolded as rioters clashed with police and set vehicles and trash bins alight before masked marchers began to ransack businesses, including in the trendy Marais shopping district.

Employees at a boutique fashion brand working in the area as the riots unfolded told me the situation felt "dystopian," and that at one point tear gas began seeping into the store.

That apparently was not enough to put some shoppers off, however, as some continued to browse, they said.

They added that there was a heavy police presence on the street throughout Saturday, and that although they had hired extra security, they eventually decided to close early as the violence intensified.

Cycling through the city on Sunday, I followed what felt like a path of destruction that steadily ramped up as I neared the Place de République, where the city's 3rd, 10th, and 11th arrondissements meet — the scene of some of Saturday's most serious violence.

I stopped at several stores along the way to photograph the damage and speak with shop workers about their experiences.

A looted storefront in Paris.

Courtesy of Lucie Bardinet A store owner at a gold-buying shop whose front window had been smashed told me she was forced to close up early on Saturday.

"I got a call.