Thursday evening, the Shein pop-up store was inaugurated on the Grand’ place in Lille, in the city center. The Chinese brand of fast fashion wanted to mark the occasion before its official opening, between this Friday and next Tuesday, by inviting influencers and “celebrities”, who paraded in front of the former perfumery with their arms full of bags imitating the Chanel design. We were even told that one of the figures of the Princes of love was present. In short, the communication to announce the installation of the pop-up store worked so well that the detractors of the brand were also present.
When the news reached the ears of Majdouline Sbai, environmental sociologist and patron saint of environmentalists in Hauts-de-France, she called for mobilization. “In our textile land, while companies are committed to local, more ecological fashion. This is a provocation! ”, she wrote on starting Monday.
Facade blurring and demonstration
“Companies like Shein are the architects of an economic model exploiting people and ecosystems while endangering our health and that of workers, through the lack of guarantee on toxicity. They offer disposable fashion, made attractive by low prices but also by offensive marketing. It’s unfair competition,” the environmentalist further denounced in his call to demonstrate in front of the Lille store, this Friday at 10 a.m.
But other activists have got ahead of environmentalists. During the night from Thursday to Friday, several activists from Extinction Rebellion (XR Lille) went to display on the windows of the pop-up store all the bad things they think about Shein and the fast fashion. In a press release, French teenagers aged 15 to 17 come from the Shein brand.
For its part, Shein assures that it does not overproduce: “We only produce what is demanded on the market”, insists the brand’s communications department to our colleagues from France 3, adding that Shein was also very particular about “chemical control standards.” In 2022, the brand has also launched into reuse with “Shein Exchange”, a platform for the exchange and resale of second-hand items from the brand. However, it is not functional in France.