“We will collaborate 100% with justice. » This is what Quentin Ruffat, spokesperson for Shein France, said on Tuesday, November 4, after the online commerce giant offered childlike sex dolls on its site. Asked on BFMTV-RMC whether the Chinese company would provide the names of the buyers, the latter replied: “ On the subject of sharing contacts (…), we will be in total transparency with justice, if they ask us such a thing, we will do it. »
Monday evening, the Paris prosecutor’s office announced having entrusted four investigations to the Office for Minors (Ofmin). These investigations, which also target the AliExpress, Temu and Wish brands, relate to the “dissemination of a violent, pornographic message, or message contrary to the dignity accessible to a minor”. In the case of Shein and AliExpress, the investigations also target “dissemination of an image or representation of a minor of a pornographic nature”.
Shein claimed to have removed all ads and visuals associated with sex dolls, and to have temporarily delisted its category “adult products”. Quentin Ruffat mentioned a “internal dysfunction” to explain how these items ended up on the platform and expressed the desire of the Chinese ultra fast-fashion brand to “work concretely to understand these dysfunctions”. He assured that the company would “put safeguards in place so that this doesn’t happen again”.
“pedocriminal objects”
Shein will be heard within two weeks at the Assembly by the information mission on controls on products imported into France. Several political leaders went to the front, the Minister of the Economy, Roland Lescure, threateningon BFM-TV and RMC, to ask, “if these behaviors are repeated, (…) that access to the Shein platform be banned from the French market”.
“He’s fed up because they’re not objects like the others”also condemned, Monday, on BFM the High Commissioner for Children, Sarah El Haïry. “These are child-criminal objects on which predators unfortunately train, sometimes before moving on to abuse children”she added.
Shein plans to open its very first permanent physical store on Wednesday at BHV, a historic department store. On the front of the BHV, the boss of Shein Donald Tang and that of the department store company, owner of the BHV, Frédéric Merlin, appear all smiles on a huge poster. If he judges “indecent” et “unacceptable” the sale of these dolls, Frédéric Merlin defended the partnership with Shein on Monday.