Shein plans first permanent stores in France, sparking backlash

Online fast-fashion retailer Shein will open its first permanent stores in France in November under an agreement with department store owner Societe des Grands Magasins (SGM), a move that sparked criticism from French retailers.

The "shop-in-shops" in the BHV department store in central Paris and Galeries Lafayette department stores in five provincial cities, mark a new step for Shein which has up to now only hosted temporary pop-up shops around the world mainly aimed at marketing.

SGM president Frederic Merlin said the launch would attract a younger clientele to its department stores, adding that the same customer might buy a Shein item and a designer handbag on the same day.

RETAILERS CRITICISE DEPARTMENT STORE DEAL WITH SHEIN
Shein, which sells 12-euro dresses and 20-euro jeans, faces pressure from other retailers, politicians and regulators in France, where lawmakers have backed a draft law regulating fast fashion that would, if implemented, ban Shein from advertising.

"In front of the Paris City Hall, they are creating the new Shein megastore, which - after destroying dozens of French brands - aims to flood our market even more massively with disposable products," Yann Rivoallan, head of fashion retail association Federation Francaise du Pret-a-Porter, said in a statement.

French retailers were already struggling to compete with Zara and H&M when Shein launched, drawing cash-strapped consumers in with its permanent discounts and addictive app.

Several French fast-fashion retailers such as Jennyfer and NafNaf went into insolvency proceedings earlier this year.

Shein's first store, on the sixth floor of the BHV, will open in early November, with later openings planned in Galeries Lafayette department stores in Dijon, Grenoble, Reims, Limoges, and Angers.