As expected, Shein‘s representatives failed to appear. On Tuesday the e-commerce platform refused to attend a hearing before a committee of the French National Assembly. The company, whose global headquarters is based in Singapore, had said it would not appear until the court had ruled on its suspension, and will consequently be referred to the public prosecutor.
Shein display at the BHV Marais – STEPHANE OUZOUNOFF / HANS LUCAS / AFP
The potential penalty is minimal: a €7,500 fine. But it is “symbolic” in light of the fast-fashion brand’s “disrespectful” attitude, says Renaissance MP Sandrine Le Feur, chair of the National Assembly’s Committee on Sustainable Development and Spatial Planning, before which the company had been summoned.
Shein has already been fined three times in France this year, totalling €191 million, notably for false promotions and misleading information.
Last week, the Asian group requested a further postponement of the hearing, arguing that it wished first to await the Paris Judicial Court’s decision on its suspension, sought by the state because of the banned products it had been selling.
Following the discovery at the end of October of child-like sex dolls and Category A weapons on sale, Shein was summoned for the first time on November 18 to appear before the Assembly’s fact-finding mission on checks of products imported into France.
The Sustainable Development Committee then took over, summoning Shein on November 26 and again on December 2. Each time, Shein requested a postponement due to the legal proceedings initiated by the government.
No excuse
“MPs respect ongoing investigations and the separation of powers, and so this inquiry is absolutely no excuse,” said Sandrine Le Feur. “Shocked” by Shein’s “three refusals,” she explained that referring the matter to the public prosecutor was “a first” for a standing committee of the Assembly. The referral is due to be made on Tuesday evening, Ms Le Feur’s office told AFP.
In her view, Shein’s behaviour is “not acceptable.” She is particularly outraged by the Asian group’s request for a “preliminary interview(…) to ensure that the hearing takes place properly.”
Shein has taken “note” of the referral, and “reaffirms its willingness to participate in the work” of the committee, the company said in a statement sent to AFP. “We consider that any contribution must be made with due respect for the ongoing legal proceedings and once the expected decision of the judicial court has been handed down,” Shein reiterated.
A cross-party motion for a European resolution will also be submitted to the Assembly’s European Affairs Committee on Wednesday, to alert Brussels and call for the suspension of the platform at EU level. On Wednesday December 10, the excesses of e-commerce platforms will again be on the parliamentary agenda, with the presentation of the report by the fact-finding mission on checks on imported products.
Before that, Shein will be in court on Friday. The state will request a three-month suspension of the site and a reopening subject to conditions, under the supervision of Arcom, the digital regulator. The Paris public prosecutor’s office indicated last week that a three-month blocking order could be considered disproportionate in light of the case law of the European Court of Human Rights.
Faced with a first attempt at suspension in early November, the group withdrew the offending products and suspended all sales made on its French site by third-party sellers, its “marketplace,” as well as all non-clothing sales.
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A host of celebrities and high-end brands have donating goods to ensure Savile Row’s latest annual ‘Pop-Up Crisis’ store will continue to support the Crisis charity event that has so far raised over £650,000 since 2018.
Image: Crisis charity
Across 8-13 December, the pop-up store at 18-19 Savile Row in London’s Mayfair will sell a curated selection of designer clothing, past stock and samples from luxury brands.
Celebs donating goods include Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, Naomie Harris, David Gandy, Jarvis Cocker, Louis Partridge, Jamie Redknapp and Emma Corrin, among others, for a week-long event and raffle with all proceeds going to help end homelessness across Britain.
Hosted by landlord The Pollen Estate, the temporary shop is also selling designer goods donated by Savile Row tailors including Mr Porter, Wales Bonner, Crockett & Jones and many other luxury brands from Barbour, Tod’s to Manolo Blahnik and Watches of Switzerland Group.
This year, celebrity model and fashion entrepreneur David Gandy will also be curating an exclusive online edit on shopfromcrisis.com, including donations from his own wardrobe as well as items from friends including Redknapp’s brand Sandbanks, Hackett and Aspinal of London.
Gandy said: “Having supported Crisis for a number of years, I’m delighted to have had the opportunity to curate my own online edit this year with the help of some of my close friends. It means a lot to know that donations from my own wardrobe are going towards such an important cause. Whether you’re looking for the perfect Christmas gift or to treat yourself, your purchase can help make a real difference to people facing homelessness this Christmas.”
Liz Choonara, executive director of Commerce and Enterprise at Crisis, added: “Pop-Up Crisis is such an iconic event in the Crisis calendar and one that we look forward to every year. We’re thrilled to be partnering with the team once again for another week celebrating the iconic craftsmanship and style of Savile Row – with all proceeds going towards our crucial work to end homelessness.”
Specialist outdoor clothing producer Dryrobe has won a trademark case against a smaller label. The win for the business, which produces waterproof towel-lined robes used by cold water swimmers, means the offending rival must now stop selling items under the D-Robe brand within a week.
Image: Dryrobe
A judge at the high court in London ruled the company was guilty of passing off its D-Robe changing robes and other goods as Dryrobe products and knew it was infringing its bigger rival’s trademark reports, The Guardian newspaper.
The company said it has rigorously defended its brand against being used generically by publications and makers of similar clothing and is expected to seek compensation from D-Robe’s owners for trademark infringement.
Dryrobe was created by the former financier Gideon Bright as an outdoor changing robe for surfers in 2010 and became the signature brand of the wild swimming craze.
Sales increased from £1.3 million in 2017 to £20.3 million in 2021 and it made profits of £8 million. However, by 2023 sales had fallen back to £18 million as the passion for outdoor sports waned and the brand faced more competition.
Bright told the newspaper the legal win was a “great result” for Dryrobe as there were “quite a lot of copycat products and [the owners] immediately try to refer to them using our brand name”.
He said the company was now expanding overseas and moving into a broader range of products, adding that sales were similar to 2023 as “a lot of competition has come in”.
On Friday, France demanded a series of measures from Shein to demonstrate that the products sold on its website comply with the law, but dropped its initial request for a total three-month suspension of the online platform, which had been based on the sale of child-like sex dolls and prohibited weapons.
Shutterstock
At a hearing before the Paris court, a lawyer representing the state said that Shein must implement controls on its website, including age verification and filtering, to ensure that minors cannot access pornographic content. The state asked the court to impose a suspension of Shein’s marketplace until Shein has provided proof to Arcom, the French communications regulator, that these controls have been implemented.
Shein deactivated its marketplace- where third-party sellers offer their products- in France on November 5, after authorities discovered illegal items for sale, but its site selling Shein-branded clothing remains accessible. The state invoked Article 6.3 of France’s Digital Economy Act, which empowers judges to order measures to prevent or halt harm caused by online content.
“We don’t claim to be here to replace the European Commission,” the state’s lawyer said. “We are not here today to regulate; we are here to prevent harm, in the face of things that are unacceptable.” At the time of writing, the hearing is still ongoing.
In a statement issued last week, the Paris public prosecutor’s office said that a three-month suspension could be deemed “disproportionate” in light of European Court of Human Rights case law if Shein could prove that it had ceased all sales of illegal products. However, the public prosecutor’s office said it “fully supported” the government’s request that Shein provide evidence of the measures taken to stop such sales.
France’s decision comes against a backdrop of heightened scrutiny of Chinese giants such as Shein and Temu under the EU’s Digital Services Act, reflecting concerns about consumer safety, the sale of illegal products, and unfair competition. In the US, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said on Monday that he was investigating Shein to determine whether the fast-fashion retailer had violated state law relating to unethical labour practices and the sale of dangerous consumer products.
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Politics8 years ago