*** This article examines Shein’s 2025 opening at BHV Marais as a Corporate Legitimisation Strategy aimed at transitioning the brand from a digital-only disruptor to a physically validated retail peer. Utilizing mimetic isomorphism, Shein attempted to leverage the “Grand Magasin’s” heritage to repair its reputation amid systemic environmental and social controversies. However, this move coincided with a rigorous French “Anti-Fast Fashion” law and EU customs reforms (Regulation 2026/382), creating a high-stakes friction between ultra-fast fashion’s expansion and European sustainability goals. The analysis examines how the “Doll Scandal” constituted a Very Large Online Platform (VLOP) compliance failure under the Digital Services Act, thereby undermining the brand’s professionalisation. Ultimately, the study finds that physical presence failed to bypass systemic regulatory pressures. Instead, the partnership acted as a catalyst, accelerating political opposition and the closure of tax loopholes for small parcels. The “Shein at BHV” experiment illustrates the limits of symbolic validation when the underlying business model remains fundamentally incompatible with emerging circular economy governance and ethical trade standards. ***
Introduction
On the 5th of November, 2025, Shein opened its first physical space in the world within the BHV Marais in Paris. This inauguration is more than a simple change in a distribution channel: it represents a strategic move in what scholars term Corporate Legitimisation Strategy[1]. By embedding itself within a Grand Magasin, Shein is attempting to move from the status of a contested e-commerce giant to a legitimized peer company.[2] However, the event is taking place in the context of the historic legislative offensive in France, creating friction between ultra-fast fashion’s expansion and the state’s pursuit of a sustainable economy.[3] This quantification is achieved by the widening gap that is created between the production volume of the textile sector and the French National Low-Carbon Strategy (SNBC for Stratégie Nationale Bas-Carbone). According to the ADEME (Agence de l’environnement et de la maîtrise de l’Energie), the textile industry is responsible for 8% of the world’s greenhouse emissions, more than the aviation industry.[4]
1. A Physical Store as a Tool for Legitimisation
Legitimacy is defined as a generalized perception or assumption that the actions of an entity are desirable, proper, or appropriate within some socially constructed system of norms, values, beliefs, and definitions.[5] For Shein, a brand often associated with throw-away society and a lack of supply chain transparency, the BHV partnership is a strategic Reputation Repair.[6] By adopting the characteristics of traditional luxury retailers (high-end estate, aesthetic displays, and face-to-face customer service), Shein engages in mimetic isomorphism.[7] It seeks to borrow the store’s 170-year-old reputation to rid itself of its low-end brand image. In the eyes of a skeptical public, if the “Store of Parisians” vets Shein, the brand’s ethical wrongs are implicitly seen as secondary to its commercial utility.[8]
This strategy is different from that of fast-fashion players. While Zara or H&M rely on a high-street presence to anchor their legitimacy,[9] Shein remains a digital-first player. By opting for a shop-in-shop at the BHV rather than a permanent concession, Shein is not building a traditional retail system but is using the Parisian store’s own staffing standards and premium floor management to offer itself an operational validation: by hosting Shein, the BHV provides it the level of legitimacy it needs.[10]
However, having a physical presence does not fix systemic issues. While the BHV provides a polished front-stage, the back-stage remains a model producing up to 10,000 new designs per day,[11] a volume that contradicts the principles of the European Union’s Circular Economy Action Plan for reparability, upgradeability, durability, and recyclability.[12]
2. The Socio-Economic Friction
On the 26th of November, 2025, the 34-year-old President of the SGM Group (which acquired the BHV in November 2023) Frédéric Merlin was summoned to appear before the Economic Affairs Commission of the Assemblée Nationale to defend his controversial alliance with Shein.[13] During this hearing, Merlin articulated a survival logic for physical retail, arguing that “since the opening [of the Shein corner] a month and a half ago, between 8,000 and 12,000 clients visit the BHV every day, [with] 80% of inner-Paris residents”[14] and that ignoring this reality would lead to the commercial desertification of Paris. In his eyes, the 1,000-square-meter Shein corner in the 45,000-square-meter BHV[15] is vital to generate the footfall necessary to sustain 1,300 local jobs.
Yet, this pragmatism has resulted in a degenerative legitimacy Loop. Multiple premium brands exited the BHV in protest of Shein’s installation.[16] This creates a polarized retail environment between the ultra-fast fashion model (based on high-volume, low-margin, and data-driven) and the sustainable model (quality-driven, slower-paced, and socially conscious).[17]
Figure 1: The BHV insert can be either an upward cycle or an ascertainment cycle.
3. Legislative Counter-Pressures: The French “Anti-Fast Fashion” Law
The Shein installation at BHV Marais is particularly striking because it stands in direct opposition to an intense legislative climate. The partnership was not formed in a regulatory vacuum: rather, it represents a bold commercial counter-move against a national “war” on fast fashion that has been unfolding since 2020.[18]
The “Anti-Fast Fashion” bill (Proposition de loi visant à réduire l’impact environnemental de l’industrie textile) created an unprecedented regulatory wall to the ultra-fast fashion business model.[19] It prohibits the use of the term “free delivery” in any advertising, as well as any advertising at all, including influencer hauls or unboxing videos, even when the influencer received only gifts. In addition, the bill weaponizes the polluter-pays principle by charging a fee of €5 per item used to subsidize virtuous companies, while requiring platforms to display mandatory warnings near the price tag regarding carbon footprint, biodiversity impact, and manufacturing location. Furthermore, the Senate added a €2 to €4 tax on small parcels under 2kg from non-EU countries and mandated that foreign companies appoint a French representative to ensure compliance with recycling obligations. The bill specifically targets “ultra-fast fashion” (mode ultra express) instead of traditional low-cost retailers,[20] characterized by industrial practices involving the launch of a high number of new product references on the market with a limited lifespan or low incentive for repair. To prevent regulatory evasion, the scope includes online marketplaces and digital interfaces that enable various third-party purchases.
The “Anti-Fast Fashion” bill achieved significant milestones with unanimous approval by the National Assembly in March 2024 and by the Senate on June 10, 2025.[21] Following its adoption by the Senate, the bill was immediately notified by the Government to the European Commission, in accordance with the mandatory notification procedure for draft technical regulations. However, as of March 2026, the bill remains not promulgated and stalled in the final stage of the legislative process. While the measures are enforceable since January 2026, a Joint Committee (Commission Mixte Paritaire) was specifically expected to meet in Autumn 2025 to reconcile the two versions of the text and address the legal incompatibilities raised by the European Commission’s “detailed opinion” of 29 September 2025 but has been repeatedly postponed due to ongoing parliamentary instability.[22]
By opening a store in a Parisian institution, the brand seeks to melt into the fashion market players through a strategy of symbolic legitimation. As the bill targets “ultra-fast fashion” (mode ultra express[23]) to avoid penalizing established French low-cost brands, Shein’s presence in a department store is an attempt to demonstrate that it can coexist with the traditional textile industry players, even as its model remains the primary target of the upcoming regulations.
Figure 2: Regulatory Roadmap for Fast-Fashion and E-commerce Customs (2020–2028).
4. Critical Analysis: Legitimisation or Desperation?
Beyond the optics of a legitimisation strategy, the partnership could appear as distribution pragmatism, aimed at leveraging BHV’s clientele to soften the financial consequences of the upcoming anti-ultra-fast fashion regulations. In addition, many e-commerce brands open physical stores in order to attract the rare people who are reluctant to buy online. However, with a turnover of €23 billion in 2022, Shein does not need these stores to boost its sales; its business model is online.[24]
Is the BHV corner a successful legitimisation tactic? The results are mixed. While it successfully captured market attention, the “Boomerang Effect,” noted in recent consumer sentiment studies,[25] suggests that high-profile physical launches often invite higher scrutiny.
The “Doll Scandal” is the first instance of this increased scrutiny. The discovery of inflatable sex dolls with child-like features within Shein’s marketplace during the week of the BHV launch severely impacted the brand’s attempt at professionalisation.[26] On the 19th of December, 2025, the Paris Judicial Court rejected the French government’s request to suspend the Shein platform for three months, ruling the measure “disproportionate.”[27] However, the government immediately announced its intention to appeal the verdict, considering that the brand’s model represents a systemic risk to public order.[28] This regulatory pressure reached a definitive turning point on February 17, 2026, when the European Commission officially launched a formal investigation into Shein under the Digital Services Act (DSA). The probe specifically targets suspected breaches regarding the platform’s addictive design (such as reward-based engagement systems), the lack of transparency in its recommender algorithms, and the persistent presence of illegal products, including child-like sex dolls.[29]
Beyond its media impact, this scandal represents a major statutory governance failure under the Digital Services Act (DSA):[30] as a Very Large Online Platform (VLOP), Shein is required to identify and mitigate risks associated with the dissemination of illegal or dangerous products, particularly regarding the protection of minors.[31] Within the academic framework of image repair, such a scandal during a period of institutional legitimisation is very harmful: it reinforced the perception that Shein lacks the necessary governance and moderation to operate within the high standards of European retail.
Furthermore, the most recent blow to the viability of this strategy arrived with the Council’s formal adoption in February 2026 of a temporary €3 fixed customs duty.[32] Starting in July 2026, this tax will be applied to all small parcels imported from outside the EU, closing the loophole that allowed Shein to flood the European market with millions of tax-free individual packages.[33] This measure preceding a digital customs reform in 2028 challenges Shein’s business model.[34] With mandatory duties now looming over even the smallest cart, the cost advantage that Shein sought to legitimise at the BHV is rapidly evaporating.
Conclusion: The paradox of the legitimisation strategy
The “Shein at BHV” experiment reveals the limits of using physical real estate to bypass systemic regulatory and ethical challenges. While Frédéric Merlin successfully leveraged the brand to generate immediate footfall, the move ultimately backfired by accelerating both political opposition and the brand’s own exposure to scandal.
By stepping out of the digital shadows and into the heart of Paris, Shein did not achieve the quiet normalisation it sought. Instead, its presence at the BHV provided a focal point for the French state and a European Union already moving to tighten the regulatory framework surrounding ultra-fast fashion. Between the pending Anti-Fast Fashion Law and the newly ratified EU small parcel tax, the brand faces increasingly restrictive economic and symbolic parameters. Ultimately, the BHV partnership may be viewed as a significant illustrative case that crystallized a complex regulatory debate into a more definitive European discourse on the governance of international digital trade.
References
Table of Cases
- Tribunal judiciaire de Paris, 19 December 2025, no 25/57861
Table of Legislation
Legislation – France
- Amendment 90 to Proposition de loi visant à réduire l’empreinte environnementale de l’industrie textile (Senate, 28 May 2025)
- Loi n° 2021-1104 du 22 août 2021 portant lutte contre le dérèglement climatique et renforcement de la résilience face à ses effets (Loi Climat et Résilience)
- Loi n° 2020-105 du 10 février 2020 relative à la lutte contre le gaspillage et à l’économie circulaire (Loi AGEC)
- Proposition de loi visant à réduire l’impact environnemental de l’industrie textile (“Anti-Fast Fashion” Bill), approved by National Assembly (March 2024) and Senate (10 June 2025)
Legislation – European Union
- Council Regulation (EU) 2026/382 (Formal adoption 11 February 2026) introducing a temporary €3 fixed customs duty for small parcels.
- Regulation (EU) 2022/2065 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 19 October 2022 on a Single Market for Digital Services (Digital Services Act) [2022] OJ L277/1
- Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR), 13 June 2024.
Parliamentary Materials and Official Communications
- Assemblée Nationale, ‘Compte rendu de réunion n°27 – Commission des affaires économiques: Audition de M. Frédéric Merlin’ (26 November 2025)
- Assemblée nationale, ‘Audition de Frédéric Merlin, président du Groupe Société des Grands Magasins (SGM)’ (Portail vidéo de l’Assemblée nationale, 26 November 2025)
- Gouvernement français, ‘Procédure judiciaire à l’encontre de SHEIN: le Gouvernement fait appel de la décision du Tribunal judiciaire’ (Communiqué de presse, 19 December 2025).
Official and EU Policy Documents
- Council of the European Union, ‘Council gives final green light to new customs duty rules for small parcels’ (Press Release 83/26, 11 February 2026)
- European Commission, ‘Circular Economy Action Plan: For a cleaner and more competitive Europe’ (Communication) COM (2020) 98 final
- European Commission, ‘Commission launches investigation into Shein under the Digital Services Act’ (Press Release 83/26, 17 February 2026)
Secondary Sources (Books, Journals, Reports and News)
- ADEME, ‘Tisser le nouveau modèle de l’industrie textile’ ADEME Magazine (n° 177, July 2025)
- Degli Esposti P, Mortara A and Roberti G, ‘Unsustainable Fashion: SHEIN and the Fast Fashion Consumption Model’ (2024) 14(3) Italian Sociological Review 929-951, 931
- DiMaggio PJ and Powell WW, ‘The Iron Cage Revisited: Institutional Isomorphism and Collective Rationality in Organizational Fields’ (1983) 48(2) American Sociological Review 147, 151
- Franceinfo, ‘Ultra fast-fashion : plusieurs marques françaises quittent le BHV après l’annonce de l’arrivée de Shein’ (4 October 2025)
- Ipsos, ‘Ultra-fast fashion : 7 Français sur 10 souhaitent freiner l’essor de la mode ultra-rapide’ (16 October 2025)
- Le Bourdon A, ‘Le parcours du combattant de la proposition de loi contre la mode ultra express: La Commission européenne adresse à la France un avis circonstancié très critique’ (CMS Francis Lefebvre, 2 October 2025)
- López T, Riedler T, Köhnen H and Fütterer M, ‘Digital Value Chain Restructuring and Labour Process Transformations in the Fast-Fashion Sector: Evidence from the Value Chains of Zara & H&M’ (2022) 22(4) Global Networks 684
- Shu-Chien Chen, ‘EU Customs Reform in 2023: The Data-Driven Approach’ (2023) Caribbean Tax Law Journal 23
- Suchman MC, ‘Managing Legitimacy: Strategic and Institutional Approaches’ (1995) 20(3) Academy of Management Review 571
- Untersinger M, Leloup D and Reynaud F, ‘Le scandale des poupées Shein expliqué en cinq questions’ Le Monde (4 November 2025)
[1] Marc C Suchman, ‘Managing Legitimacy: Strategic and Institutional Approaches’ (1995) 20 Academy of Management Review 571.
[2] Cyrielle Cabot, ‘Shein mise sur la France pour se donner une image respectable’ France 24 (Paris, 8 October 2025) https://www.france24.com/fr/france/20251008-shein-mise-sur-la-france-pour-se-donner-une-image-respectable accessed 6 March 2026.
[3] Loi n° 2020-105 du 10 février 2020 relative à la lutte contre le gaspillage et à l’économie circulaire (The Loi AGEC aims to combat waste and transition toward a circular economy model: it mandates waste reduction, the phasing out of single-use plastics, and the promotion of reuse)) and Loi n° 2021-1104 du 22 août 2021 (The Loi Climat et Résilience targets a 40% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 through measures such as the “Zero Net Land Take” objective, the regulation of fossil fuel advertising, and the promotion of sustainable food in public canteens).
[4] ADEME, ‘Tisser le nouveau modèle de l’industrie textile’ ADEME Magazine (n° 177, July 2025) 6.
[5] Suchman (n 1) 574.
[6] Mooweon Rhee and Tohyun Kim, ‘After the Collapse: A Behavioral Theory of Reputation Repair’ in Michael L Barnett and Timothy G Pollock (eds), The Oxford Handbook of Corporate Reputation (OUP 2012) 446.
[7] Mimetic isomorphism can be defined as a process where organisations imitate the structures or behaviours of other entities that they perceive as successful or legitimate. See Paul J DiMaggio and Walter W Powell, ‘The Iron Cage Revisited: Institutional Isomorphism and Collective Rationality in Organizational Fields’ (1983) 48(2) American Sociological Review 147, 151.
[8] Cabot (n 2).
[9] Tatiana López and others, ‘Digital Value Chain Restructuring and Labour Process Transformations in the Fast-Fashion Sector: Evidence from the Value Chains of Zara & H&M’ (2022) 22(4) Global Networks 684, 688.
[10] Cabot (n 2).
[11] McKinsey & Company, ‘What is fast fashion?’ (23 January 2025) https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/retail/our-insights/what-is-fast-fashion accessed 6 March 2026.
[12] European Commission, ‘Circular Economy Action Plan: For a cleaner and more competitive Europe’ (Communication) COM (2020) 98 final.
[13] Assemblée Nationale, ‘Compte rendu de réunion n°27 – Commission des affaires économiques : Audition de M. Frédéric Merlin’ (26 November 2025).
[14] Assemblée nationale, ‘Audition de M. Frédéric Merlin, président du Groupe Société des Grands Magasins (SGM)’ (Portail vidéo de l’Assemblée nationale, 26 November 2025) https://videos.assemblee-nationale.fr/video.17793467_6926b80d56a81.commission-des-affaires-economiques—m-frederic-merlin-president-du-groupe-societe-des-grands-ma-26-novembre-2025 accessed 20 December 2025 [33:14].
[15] Assemblée nationale (n 15) [31:50].
[16] Franceinfo, ‘Ultra fast-fashion : plusieurs marques françaises quittent le BHV après l’annonce de l’arrivée de Shein’ (4 October 2025).
[17] Degli Esposti P, Mortara A and Roberti G, ‘Unsustainable Fashion: SHEIN and the Fast Fashion Consumption Model’ (2024) 14(3) Italian Sociological Review 929-951, 931.
[18] Loi AGEC and Loi Climat et Résilience.
[19] Proposition de loi visant à réduire l’impact environnemental de l’industrie textile, Sénat Texte n° 136 (2024-2025) modifié le 10 juin 2025.
[20] Amendment 90 to Proposition de loi visant à réduire l’empreinte environnementale de l’industrie textile (Senate, 28 May 2025).
[21] Vie Publique, ‘Proposition de loi visant à réduire l’impact environnemental de l’industrie textile’ (10 June 2025) https://www.vie-publique.fr/loi/293332-proposition-de-loi-fast-fashion-impact-environnemental-mode-jetable accessed 6 March 2026
[22] Amaury Le Bourdon, ‘Le parcours du combattant de la proposition de loi contre la mode ultra express : La Commission européenne adresse à la France un avis circonstancié très critique’ (CMS Francis Lefebvre, 2 October 2025) https://www.cms-lawnow.com/fr/ealerts/2025/10/le-parcours-du-combattant-de-la-proposition-de-loi-contre-la-mode-ultra-express accessed 4 March 2026.
[23] Amendement 90 (n 20).
[24] Cabot (n 2).
[25] Ipsos, ‘Ultra-fast fashion : 7 Français sur 10 souhaitent freiner l’essor de la mode ultra-rapide’ (16 October 2025).
[26] Martin Untersinger, Damien Leloup and Florian Reynaud, ‘Le scandale des poupées Shein expliqué en cinq questions’ Le Monde (4 November 2025, updated 5 November 2025).
[27] Tribunal judiciaire de Paris, 19 December 2025, no 25/57861.
[28] Gouvernement français, ‘Procédure judiciaire à l’encontre de SHEIN : le Gouvernement fait appel de la décision du Tribunal judiciaire’ (Communiqué de presse, 19 December 2025).
[29] European Commission, ‘Commission launches investigation into Shein under the Digital Services Act’ (Press release, 17 February 2026).
[30] Regulation (EU) 2022/2065 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 19 October 2022 on a Single Market For Digital Services (Digital Services Act) [2022] OJ L277/1 (DSA).
[31] DSA, art 34(1)(b) and art 35.
[32] Council of the European Union, ‘Council gives final green light to new customs duty rules for small parcels’ (Press Release 83/26, 11 February 2026) https://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/press/press-releases/2026/02/11/customs-duty-small-parcels/ accessed 6 March 2026.
[33] European Commission, ‘EU introduces customs duties on low-value e-commerce packages’ (Press release, Brussels, 12 December 2025).
[34] Shu-Chien Chen, ‘EU Customs Reform in 2023: The Data-Driven Approach’ (2023) Caribbean Tax Law Journal 23.
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