France has initiated proceedings to suspend the online fast-fashion retailer Shein after authorities discovered childlike sex dolls and weapons being sold on its marketplace. The move coincides with the opening of the company\u2019s first physical store inside a Paris department store.<\/p>\n
The discovery, made by France\u2019s consumer watchdog on Saturday, has intensified public outrage and increased pressure on the Chinese company. The finance ministry announced that, under instructions from the Prime Minister, the government is initiating proceedings to suspend Shein \u201cfor as long as necessary\u201d until the platform proves full compliance with French laws and regulations.<\/p>\n
Commerce and Small Business Minister Serge Papin ordered the suspension, declaring in parliament, \u201cEnough is enough with the pedopornographic dolls, and now the weapons,\u201d after lawmaker Antoine Vermorel-Marques revealed listings for banned items, including brass knuckles and an axe.<\/p>\n
Shein\u2019s Response and Scope of Suspension<\/strong><\/p>\n Shein said it had sanctioned the sellers involved and implemented a global ban on the sale of sex dolls. The company also voluntarily decided to temporarily suspend its French marketplace to \u201creview and strengthen\u201d third-party seller oversight. Shein\u2019s website hosts both its own clothing lines and products from independent vendors.<\/p>\n The finance ministry warned that if prohibited items continue to appear, the suspension could be extended to the entire Shein website in France, not just its marketplace. The government said an \u201cinitial review\u201d of the situation would take place within 48 hours.<\/p>\n Digital Minister Anne Le Henanff has asked the European Commission to launch an investigation into Shein\u2019s practices. A Commission spokesperson confirmed that contact had been made with the company but said no formal investigation has yet been opened. French lawmakers have also summoned Shein to appear before parliament on Nov.\u00a018.<\/p>\n Controversy and Retail Impact<\/strong><\/p>\n The opening of Shein\u2019s concession on the sixth floor of the BHV department store had already sparked controversy among politicians and local retailers, who argue that the company\u2019s business model gives it an unfair advantage.<\/p>\n Soci\u00e9t\u00e9 des Grands Magasins (SGM), which owns BHV, invited Shein to open the concession to attract younger shoppers. SGM Chairman Fr\u00e9d\u00e9ric Merlin welcomed Shein\u2019s decision to suspend its marketplace and expressed confidence in the quality of products sold in-store. Additional Shein concessions are planned in five other regional department stores owned by SGM in the coming weeks.<\/p>\n Outside the BHV store, demonstrators \u2014 including members of the child protection group Mouv\u2019Enfants \u2014 protested against the opening. Meanwhile, the Paris prosecutor\u2019s office has launched a separate investigation into Shein and AliExpress over the alleged dissemination of pornographic images or representations of minors.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"France has initiated proceedings to suspend the online fast-fashion retailer Shein after authorities discovered childlike sex dolls and…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":555885,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5309],"tags":[177611,165587,1395,101463,143311,6314,177609,2000,299,2557,13403,36,125802,363,177610,177612,8162,33176],"class_list":{"0":"post-555884","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-france","8":"tag-antoine-vermorel-marques","9":"tag-bhv","10":"tag-china","11":"tag-contraband","12":"tag-digital-regulation","13":"tag-e-commerce","14":"tag-e-commerce-retail","15":"tag-eu","16":"tag-europe","17":"tag-european-commission","18":"tag-fast-fashion","19":"tag-france","20":"tag-marketplace","21":"tag-retail","22":"tag-serge-papin","23":"tag-sgm","24":"tag-shein","25":"tag-suspension"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/555884","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=555884"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/555884\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/555885"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=555884"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=555884"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=555884"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}