Nostalgia: They never left the 80s

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And no, you're not dreaming, we're back in the 80s. In the typical teenage bedroom of the time, objects that have become iconic: the cassette player, the Minitel, and the Rubik's Cube. Objects that many French people have kept. First rewind near Le Havre, here, we travel back in time, just by ear. The sound of VHS. At Fanny and Thierry Le Gros's, the soundtrack of an era. They don't just collect. They live daily among objects from the 80s. But for Fanny, living in a museum is out of the question. She uses these objects normally, like the Arcopal plates, found at flea markets. Both were born in 1977. With these objects, they have encapsulated their childhood memories. " We grew up in them, we were kids, we experienced all the objects, " says Thierry Legros of the "Eighties" association. " We are not stuck in our childhood or anything. It's the pleasure of being in our universe and we actually stop time. We pause and then it feels good, it invigorates us, " adds Fanny Legros.

Chasing a bygone era, some have shifted gears. Here's the R5, the best-selling car of the '80s. Mathieu Roland's great love. " It's simple, there's a steering wheel, three pedals, and a gear lever. That's it. I do about 30,000 to 40,000 km a year for leisure and work. That's the only place I drive. It's a little candy that rolls along the road, " confides the Renault 5 collector. The carpentry teacher has about thirty candies like this, as tangy as can be. And he's not alone. Along with him, the members of this association come to seek out the transgressive spirit of the '80s. A nostalgia that's also a hit. In a pocket-sized store in the heart of Paris, there are 6,000 audio cassettes. A couple in their thirties opened the shop last January. In addition to old albums, there are new releases. Because the market is regaining momentum. " We have a special little corner for today's artists. Most of them release only on cassette for the material side. Afterwards, they're available for streaming, and all that. Each cassette is unique, " says Léa Aubry, co-founder of the K7 club store.

But do you have to have lived in the 80s to want to rediscover them? Near Lille, this association meets every month and, surprise... " I wasn't even born, " confides one member of the association. Between blind tests and dance parties, swaying friendships were born. " The 80s are unifying. It's partying, it's fun. People want to share," declares another member. A strange alchemy of a slightly fantasized era, but one that always makes the eyes of those who immerse themselves in it shine.