A French court on Friday rejected the state’s request to suspend Shein’s website in France, calling it “disproportionate” after the Asian e-commerce giant removed illicit products sold on its platform.
French authorities have called for the fast fashion company’s website to be blocked for three months after discovering adverts selling weapons, banned medicines and child sex dolls.
Following the court’s decision, the French government announced that it would appeal, according to a press release sent to AFP.
“The judicial court (…) did not want to order measures aimed at preventing the sale of pornographic dolls, category A weapons and medicines,” the government stressed.
“Therefore, convinced of the systemic risk of the model linked to Shein, and at the request of the Prime Minister, the government will appeal the decision in the coming days,” the press release added.
The authorities have requested that the platform can only reopen if measures are applied to prevent violations from happening again.
The Paris judicial court recognized “a serious breach of public order”, but considered that the sale of the products in question was “one-off” and stressed that Shein had withdrawn the products.
However, the court issued an “instruction” to Shein not to resume the sale of “sexual products that may constitute pornographic content without implementing age verification measures.”
Shein, founded in China and currently based in Singapore, has faced fierce political resistance since opening its first physical store at BHV Marais in central Paris last month. French authorities have accused the company — along with other predominantly Chinese platforms that send cheap clothing and goods to consumers — of selling illegal products and harming competition with local businesses.
The government initially attempted to suspend Shein through an administrative procedure that did not require court approval, but its efforts failed after the company removed the sex dolls and guns in question and halted their sales in the market. A temporary ban would not have affected the physical store.
France has also pushed for tighter controls across the continent, including a proposal with the European Union to impose a temporary tax of 3 euros ($3.51) on small packaging, before implementing a permanent tax in 2028. The measure, expected to come into force in July next year, will end the customs duty exemption for goods under 150 euros, which has been key to the rapid growth of platforms like Shein.
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