One year after the start of the offensive against Shein, French minister Serge Papin highlights the collapse in traffic to ultra-fast fashion platforms.
Amid scandals, environmental impact, unfair competition, and the sale of dangerous products, the French government has stepped up its fight against Chinese e-commerce giants like Shein, Temu, and AliExpress.
A Clear Drop in Traffic
According to Médiamétrie data for Fevad in July 2026, the monthly traffic to Shein fell by 42.3% year over year, while Temu declined by 36.4% and AliExpress by 10.4%. The government hails these results as evidence that targeted public action can influence consumer purchasing behavior and challenge the notion of state impotence in the face of these global players.
Nevertheless, the judicial bid to outright ban the Shein platform from French territory was rejected by the courts and upheld on appeal. Additionally, the national tax introduced on March 1 on small packages from outside the European Union was quickly circumvented by the platforms, which redirected their logistics flows and deliveries through neighboring EU member states.
Harnessing the Customs Lever
What marked the turning point was the shift from isolated national regulation to a harmonized European action, driven by France. After numerous non-conformities were found during customs inspections, the 27 EU member states implemented on July 1 a unified customs duty of 3 euros per category of items, complemented on November 1 by 2 euros in processing fees. This direct surcharge of 5 euros per category immediately drove up prices on these sites and triggered a drastic drop in small-package imports.
Despite these advances, the government emphasizes that vigilance remains essential due to ongoing substantial and potentially hazardous import flows. Customs regularly uncover thousands of non-compliant products exposing consumers to major risks, such as fires caused by defective electronics. Finally, in response to critiques that these taxes erode the purchasing power of low-income households, the administration denounces the lure of purchasing power based on cheap but dangerous and noncompliant products.
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