Chinese fast-fashion retailer Shein will open its first permanent physical outlets in France in November, taking concessions in BHV Marais in Paris and five Galeries Lafayette department stores in Dijon, Reims, Grenoble, Angers and Limoges.

The move, part of a partnership with retail property group Société des Grands Magasins (SGM), signals a shift from Shein’s pop-up strategy to a bricks-and-mortar presence, as regulators tighten rules on ultra-fast fashion and low-value import exemptions.

SGM president Frédéric Merlin said the launch aims to draw younger shoppers and create jobs. “The wheels are in motion: we will not stop fast fashion… With physical stores, they will have the same weapons as their detractors,” Merlin told Le Parisien. He added the plan would create 200 direct and indirect roles in France.

Galeries Lafayette’s parent company opposes the plan and says it will seek to block Shein outlets in stores it controls, arguing the brand’s positioning conflicts with its values. “Galeries Lafayette profoundly disagrees with this decision with regards to the positioning and practices of this ultra fast fashion brand,” the group said in a statement.

Political and industry figures have criticised the expansion. Paris mayor Anne Hidalgo said hosting Shein’s first permanent store runs counter to efforts to support sustainable local commerce. “We are extremely concerned by BHV’s decision to host, in November, the first permanent store of the Shein company in France,” she wrote on LinkedIn.

Yann Rivoallan, president of the French Federation of Women’s Ready-to-Wear, argued the brand has harmed domestic retailers. “They’re taking over everything… now they also want to take up physical space in the most beautiful locations,” he told France Inter, adding “Shein has destroyed 15,000 jobs” over more than three years. He also said the new megastore aims to “flood our market even more massively with disposable products”.

Shein has defended its strategy. Executive chairman Donald Tang described choosing France as a tribute to its fashion status. “By choosing France as a testing ground for physical retail, we are sending a strong message,” he told Le Figaro, denying responsibility for the decline of traditional retailers and promising to “work alongside them… generating footfall in stores” and creating 200 jobs.

France has moved to regulate ultra-fast fashion, with lawmakers backing a bill that would penalise disposable fashion and ban advertising for groups including Shein and Temu. The company was fined €40 million in July for misleading discount practices and environmental claims, and faces long-standing criticism over environmental impact and labour conditions, which it denies.

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