Chinese ultrafast fashion giant Shein will open its first permanent stores in France this autumn. Dutch financial daily Het Financieele Dagblad (FD) covered the story and spoke with Dr Mariangela Lavanga, Associate Professor at the Erasmus School of History, Culture and Communication (ESHCC).
Shein has partnered with Société des Grands Magasins (SGM), owner of department store chains such as Galeries Lafayette and BHV Marais. The move has sparked fierce opposition: Galeries Lafayette publicly refused to host the brand, while the French retail federation warned of “disposable products flooding the market” and undermining local labels. Still, SGM is pressing ahead, seeing Shein’s presence as a way to fill empty retail spaces and attract a younger audience.
In this context, Lavanga provided valuable insights in the FD. She explained that the luxury industry is stagnating, while department stores struggle with vacancies and declining sales. “A major investment from Shein, able and willing to pay for large, expensive retail space, is therefore attractive for department stores.”
She also highlighted the symbolic power of a physical presence in Paris:“By opening a store in Paris, Shein legitimises itself as a fashion retailer. If you have a shop there, you’ve made it.”
Beyond her contributions to the public debate, Lavanga is actively researching sustainable alternatives for the fashion industry. She is currently involved in the Horizon Europe project FABRIX - Fostering local, beautiful, and sustainably designed regenerative textile & clothing ecosystems, with Rotterdam and Athens as case studies. FABRIX takes a human-centred approach to digital and industrial technologies, with an eye for spatial dynamics, aiming to foster a more localised, socially inclusive, regenerative, and innovative manufacturing sector.
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Read the full FD article (in Dutch) on the FD website.
