Shein launches in Europe: the Chinese brand will open its first brick-and-mortar store in Paris.

ParisIn the face of (so far frustrated) attempts by Brussels and countries like France to curb the growth of the Chinese fast fashion giant, Shein is striking back. The Asian brand has surprised everyone by announcing that it will open its first permanent physical store in early November: it will be in Paris, on the sixth floor of the BHV department store, located in the city center. Subsequently, it will open five more stores in France, according to the Asian giant in a statement, in the Galeries Lafayette – usually focused on luxury fashion – in Dijon, Grenoble, Reims, Limoges and Angers.

The Shein store in Paris will occupy 1,200 square meters, alongside brands such as Chanel and Hermès, and will create 200 jobs. "Our choice is a tribute to France and Paris, the world capital of fashion and the birthplace of modern department stores," said Shein CEO Donald Tang. Le Figaro. France is Shein's first European market.

The announcement comes just four weeks after France fined the Asian fast-fashion chain €150 million for failing to respect user consent when implementing cookies. In addition, France has long been seeking ways to prevent the growth of Shein, which is often accused of unfair competition and causing a major environmental impact and criticized for its workers' working conditions.

The most notable measure is a law specifically designed to curb the Shein phenomenon and other Asian ultra-fast and ultra-cheap fashion giants like Temu, which could be definitively approved this fall. The law, which enjoys enormous political consensus, stipulates that brands must pay a surcharge for products that have a high environmental cost and includes a ban on advertising, even for influencers, who could be sanctioned if they promote ultra-fast fashion brands.

Change of strategy

The implementation of physical stores is a global first and a guiding principle in Shein's business strategy, which has always been limited to online sales. Until now, it had only opened pop-up stores in different cities around the world, such as the one it set up for a few days in Barcelona in 2022. "This is neither a temporary experiment nor a pop-up store. It's a commitment. We are putting our roots down in Paris and France," the company's CEO emphasized.

According to Tang, after the Paris store, five more will open, all in Galeries Lafayette. But Shein's arrival in France could be complicated because the historic galleries have announced that they "reject" the establishment of the ultra-fast fashion brand and will fight to prevent it. In a statement released Wednesday, they stated that they "deeply disagree" with the decision of the SGM group, the current owner of Galeries Lafayette. "This ultra-fast fashion brand contradicts the offering and values" of the galleries and "is also contrary to the contractual terms" between SGM and Galeries Lafayette, the statement said.

The SGM group defends Shein's establishment in luxury department stores and assures that it will attract young customers, not used to shopping in department stores like Lafayette. "Shein represents 25 million French customers! We have asked ourselves how to transform this extraordinary online business machine to benefit physical commerce," said Frédéric Merlin, president of SGM, in an interview on The Parisian"We've taken many precautions regarding traceability and compliance; all of these products will meet European standards," he promised.