“Shein is not welcome in Nice”
: Mayor Christian Estrosi (Horizon) announced on Wednesday that he was opposed to the opening of a pop-up store by the “fast-fashion” giant Shein, which usually sells online.
The local press announced on Tuesday that it would take place for three days in mid-April at the Gare du Sud, a former station in the city center redeveloped into a public media library, with in the large hall a restoration site entrusted in 2022 by the city to the private group Iera.
“Christian Estrosi immediately contacted Renato Iera, manager of the Iera group, who agreed to cancel the operation
,” announced the municipality.
“The city of Nice is not intended to welcome a company which does not respect its humanist values and represents a threat to local commerce for which I have always fought,”
argued the councilor in a press release.
“If, however, the company in question attempted to set up its pop-up store elsewhere in Nice, I will take all measures in my power to prevent it
,” he added.
Contacted by AFP, the town hall did not specify how the elected official could oppose a possible location in a completely private place.
Also contacted, Shein did not immediately react.
Symbol of “fast fashion”
With a plethora of references at very low prices, the application founded in China in 2012 and now headquartered in Singapore, is experiencing dazzling success in a context of inflation.
But it has become a symbol of “fast fashion”, criticized in France, even if it denies it, for practices considered harmful to the environment and its use of underpaid subcontractors.
In March, the National Assembly adopted a bill to make fast fashion less attractive.
The Senate has yet to vote on this text.
Shein only sells online and targets a young clientele, very present on social networks, through influencers or events such as pop-up stores.
In the fall, the operation of one of these shops in Lille had already been the subject of protests.