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Spray of fake blood, demonstrations by environmental activists from Extinction Rebellion, in Lyon, the fast-fashion brand Shein opened its ephemeral store in a stormy environment this Saturday.
Renowned for its very low prices and its permanent renewal of collections, Shein - pronounced chi-ine - was able to seduce 12-25 year olds in France to the point of creating a real crush when the Lyon store opened, the only one in France.
Read alsoThe seduction operation of Shein, the Chinese low-cost fashion steamroller
A model criticized by Lyon's deputy in charge of the sustainable economy Camille Augey: "
Shein, with its deadly social and environmental practices, is the opposite of the values promoted by the City of Lyon: a commercial activity that respects the people and the planet, favoring local manufacturing and quality and sustainable products.
On site, employees of the Lyon-based company WeDressFair, which offers online and in its local store “
only brands with verified environmental and social commitments
”, also decided to demonstrate against the installation of this store.
“18 hours of work per day, a salary of €18 per day”
“Our goal was to meet consumers to discuss their motivations. We realize that most are not aware of the misdeeds of this company. Many have not dug into the question and come only for the prices
", deplores Marie Nguyen, co-founder of WeDressFair, who also unfurled a banner in front of the Shein store where one could read "
20% of Shein clothes contain toxic products
” or “
one day off per month, 18 hours of work per day, a salary of €18 per day
”.
Read alsoHow Shein, the Chinese fast-fashion bulldozer, conquered teenagers
For the latter, Shein "
is a machine to destroy lives on the other side of the world, to destroy the environment and finally local trade, because we do not save on human and environmental rights.
".
On the side of the management of Shein, we assure “
that there is above all a great misunderstanding and ignorance around the brand.
If our products are so inexpensive, it's already because we save money by not having a physical store, but above all because our business model is based on an on-demand production system, which means that all the clothes you see are sold with almost no waste
”, justified to
Lyon Femmes
Marion Bouchut, director of corporate communication for Shein France.
Open Saturday, the Shein Pop-up store is due to close this Tuesday, March 14.