The Commercial Relationships between Small Towns and their Rural Environment. A Case Study of East Central France

International audienceThe position of small towns in urban networks has been a permanent problematic for many decades. In urban networks, small towns seem to be more fragile than great agglomerations, because of their smaller population, and consequently their smaller commercial system. The aim of this paper is to understand the commercial relationships between small towns and their rural and regional territories. More precisely, I will see if small towns remain as commercial poles for their surrounding territories and their regional urban network.La place des petites villes dans les réseaux urbains pose question. En effet, les petites villes semblent être plus fragiles que les grandes agglomérations en raison d’une population plus réduite et donc d’un système commercial moins développé. L’objectif de cet article est de comprendre les relations commerciales entre les petites villes et leur arrière-pays, plus particulièrement le rôle de pôle commercial qu’elles occupent pour leurs territoires environnants et leurs réseaux régionaux