PARIS — The straight-talking 34-year-old entrepreneur Frédéric Merlin knew he would ruffle feathers when he agreed to let Shein open a boutique in his flagship department store BHV, a historic Paris landmark that stands opposite the Paris City Hall.
But he likely had no idea that the scale of the outrage would skyrocket following accusations over the weekend that the fast-fashion behemoth allowed the sale of childlike sex dolls on its platform.
Now, the opening of Shein’s first brick-and-mortar store Wednesday, a move designed attract a younger generation of shoppers to the struggling mall, seems certain to be marred by the snowballing scandal.
Two candidates for the Paris mayor election next year, Emmanuel Grégoire and Ian Brossat, plan to hold a press conference Wednesday in front of BHV to protest Shein’s arrival in France. Police had gathered outside the mall Tuesday evening, as small demonstrations that had been staged outside the mall were expected to continue after the opening.
Shein has long drawn controversy over a business model critics say flouts workers’ rights and environmental norms — especially in France, a country proud of its highly regarded domestic fashion industry and where shoppers remain more attached to the in-store experience than, say, the United States.
The revelations regarding the sale of childlike sex dolls on the platform intensified the furor toward the platform, so much so that Merlin said on French radio he considered putting off the opening of the boutique, even after draping BHV in large banners for the occasion.
France’s Economy Minister Roland Lescure threatened Monday to ban Shein from selling its products in France, and said he had tasked France’s digital regulator Arcom to look into the matter. The Paris prosecutor’s office Monday opened investigations into practices at Shein, but also at AliExpress, Temu and Wish, according to French media reports.
But Merlin said that Shein’s rapid response to a scandal he called “despicable” and “indecent” convinced him to continue moving forward.
On Tuesday, Shein’s France spokesperson said the firm would “100 percent cooperate with the judicial authorities” to identify buyers and had suspended the sale of all sex dolls on its websites.
Shein’s executive chairman, Donald Tang, told POLITICO that the firm created an “integrity panel” to review what products are uploaded on the platform and launched an internal inquiry.
“We must act quickly to make sure it doesn’t happen again,” he said.
Platform non grata
The latest controversy comes amid a wider questions in France and beyond about Shein’s compliance with European Union rules and legislation. In July, the French watchdog the DGCCRF fined the company €40 million for misleading consumers about prices.
Back in May, the European Commission and consumer protection authorities had also notified the platform of alleged violations of consumer protection law, including fake discounts and misleading sustainability claims. European Justice Commissioner Michael McGrath later said he was determined to crack down on the sale of goods on Temu and Shein that do not comply with EU regulations.
The Commission is keeping a watchful eye on the investigations unfolding in France. The EU executive is tasked with monitoring Shein, Temu and AliExpress under its powerful Digital Services Act, since these are platforms with over 45 million users that carry systemic risks.
On Monday, a Commission spokesperson refused to comment on the investigations in France but said the EU executive was in close contact with French authorities.
The incident also raises questions around how the e-commerce platforms protect minors and use age verification, another key part of the DSA. It’s a topic that is close to the heart of French President Emmanuel Macron, who has been actively calling for stricter age verifications online.
Nicolas Barré and Océane Herrero contributed to this report.
Furor mounts against Shein as e-commerce giant opens Paris boutique
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