The collective of contemporary art galleries in Nice are back at it with another edition of On Art. After this summer’s Nocturne series, the popularity of this multi-gallery, multi-exhibition evening grew to a regular – interrupted, of course, by that nasty virus.

***NEW!!!**** Introducing our first Christmas Guide with new pages added! An all-digital, all-local and all-Christmas guide to artisan crafts and local boutiques! 2020 has been a rough year and small local businesses have been particularly hard-hit. We wanted to give some extra visibility to the local artisans and boutiques that make their wonderful products right here in our own backyard.

On 2 December, the British Embassy of Paris issued a press release to remind business owners to prepare for the coming changes to border policies with the United Kingdom. Even though Brexit officially took place last January, there has been a ‘transition period’ that ends on 31 December 2020. After this, a massive re-haul of the border system will take effect, greatly affecting the movement of goods. The embassy emphasises there is  “no time to lose”.

In a much anticipated and welcomed video conference last November 25th, the Regional Committee of Tourism for the Côte d'Azur (CRT) presented a detailed plan of action to adapt to the various evolutions of the health crisis and save the 150,000 direct and indirect jobs that depend on tourism in Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur.

Consistently working to help the small businesses, Cannes has relaunched the successful and supportive initiative, #HelpCommerces. From the first weeks of confinement, last April, the Cannes City Hall had set up the innovative and concrete economic and social support system to accompany the independent tradesmen and craftsmen of Cannes, severely impacted by the health crisis linked to Covid-19.

Originally from Michigan, Kristin Grauer has been working in Foreign Services for over a decade. A specialist in business and economics, she has completed tours as an embassy economic officer in Baghdad and Moscow, and as a political officer in Monrovia, Liberia and Cotonou, Benin. In summer 2020, she took the post of Consul General of the United States Consulate of Marseille, a post that changes every four years.

As the Coronavirus crisis continues to keep us in confinement, restaurants and caterers are among the hardest-hit businesses. Here, we bring you the first-hand account of local Chef Theodora Hauzer, owner of United Flavours of Food Catering & Events in Villeneuve-Loubet. Originally from Singapore and classically trained in French cuisine, Chef Hauzer brings a unique Eurasian flavour to the Riviera and she was in high demand for private events. At the start of 2020, she closed her restaurant to focus on private catering. Then Covid happened. She shares with Riviera Insider her experience of the Coronavirus crisis, how she faces the continued uncertainty and the most important thing to get us through this year.

While we are all obsessively washing and disinfecting every surface, Riviera Insider health columnist, Christine Kjeldbjerg discusses the 'hygiene hypothesis' and why it is important to consider the link between germs and a healthy immune system. She gives her top five tips on supporting a healthy and robust immune system.