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This paper deals with retail within the “peri-urban” areas around large cities. It combines the analyses of the retail structure and of local consumers’ practices and representations. Using retail account databases and a series of interviews with inhabitants in the north of the Paris metropolitan area (Senlis, Méru, and Écouen-Ézanville), this paper explores the concept of “proximity” and aims to contribute to the debate about the construction of local territories on the fringes of large cities. It shows first how inhabitants use commercial centers, and then moves on to examine how retail contributes to the good image and the inhabitants’ deep attachment to their local environment. Finally, it highlights the various forms of proximity—spatial proximity vs network-based proximity, local dependency vs a larger area of use—that differ according to individual characteristics and spatial contexts. As these spatial practices have already been identified within higher-density areas, the paper concludes that peri-urban areas are being increasingly normalized.