Ian Brossat, the Communist senator for Paris, speaks at the microphone, with Paris Deputy Mayor Nicolas Bonnet Oulaldj to his left and union representatives in Paris present, during a demonstration against Shein’s arrival on October 10, 2025. Daniel Perron/Hans Lucas/AFP/Getty Images
As informed by CNN
France announced the suspension of market access for Shein after a sensational scandal over the sale of “child-like” sex dolls.
The government began on Wednesday the process to ban the French site “for as long as is necessary for the platform to prove to the authorities that all goods comply with laws and regulations,” the Finance Ministry said.
Over the weekend the French anti-fraud agency accused the company of allowing third parties to sell such dolls on the French platform.
Context of the crisis
Shein said it would suspend sales of all third-party products in France to “guarantee full compliance with the law and the highest standards of consumer protection,” and added that it had made this decision independently of the government’s initiative to block the site.
Meanwhile, the brand opened the world’s first physical store in BHV in Paris, amid outrage in France over the scandal and the platform’s reputation for fast fashion. Shein also plans to launch a clothing line in five Galeries Lafayette stores, and BHV and Galeries are part of the Société des Grands Magasins (SGM) group.
The opening was accompanied by protests, though many people queued for the brand’s products.
The city of Paris confirms that Shein contradicts its values.
Subsequently the Galeries centers are changing their name as part of a rebranding; five Lafayette galleries could be renamed BHV, a development that has posed a serious challenge for the brand in the country.
We are talking about a brand that is regularly bought by 25 million French customers, who now regard it as unreliable because of purchases on this platform.
Criticism has also intensified regarding the environmental and industry impact of fast fashion: Paris aims to strengthen its position as a leader in green initiatives, notably in preparation for the city’s future commitments. The Paris prosecutor’s office has opened investigations into several platforms on suspicion of distributing dangerous content.
On Monday France also opened investigations into Temu, Wish, and AliExpress for possible distribution of “brazen, pornographic or demeaning messages accessible to minors,” as well as for possible posting of images of minors in a pornographic context. Temu told CNN that it is working with the antitrust authority to strengthen child protection, and AliExpress said it had removed the relevant products and taken the matter seriously.
In a statement to CNN, Shein’s chief executive Dong Tang said that while each seller is responsible for its listings, the company has banned the sale of the dolls and strengthened internal safeguards and will cooperate with the official investigation. Frédéric Merlin, head of SGM, stated that the decision to halt online access helped preserve the store launch after news of the doll sales.
On Monday, Sara El-Haïri, France’s High Authority for Child Protection, reacted critically to the presence of such goods on the Shein site: “No one has the right to buy pedophile dolls. These are deliberate copies of children who hold teddy bears and wear children’s clothing,” she said, calling buyers potential threats.
Additional investigations into violations on several online platforms have also been opened. CNN asked Wish for comment. At the same time, the article has been updated with new information.
