llaboration was designed from the outset as a limited-duration initiative,  said a spokesperson for the company in a statement to WWD.  Shein engaged in this collaboration in good faith and made a substantial contribution, generating a significant influx of visitors and strong customer engagement at a crucial moment for BHV Paris. 

The company added that it remained  open to constructive dialogue with a view to an orderly conclusion of the current partnership. 

 This experimentation was a strategic error,  Cottendin told AFP, adding that Shein would  ideally  leave the store by Christmas. That would be just a little over a year after its splashy launch resulted in lines down the block and scores of protestors on the other side of the street.

Frederic Merlin, CEO of Société des Grands Magasins, and Donald Tang, CEO of Shein, on a poster on the day the Shein store opened on the sixth floor of BHV in Paris, Nov. 5, 2025. Stéphane Ouzounoff/Hans Lucas via AFP and Getty Images

The decision has been welcomed by French political leaders. Paris Mayor Emmanuel Grégoire described the end of the partnership as  excellent  news, while Trade Minister Serge Papin told AFP he welcomed  the end  of the collaboration, arguing that the platform  does not respect our rules. 

Merlin said restoring BHV no longer fit SGM's strategy.

When SGM acquired BHV in 2023, the group had also planned to acquire the building itself. However, those plans collapsed after the property was sold by owner Galeries Lafayette in January 2026 to Canadian investment firm Brookfield.

 Following the sale of the property walls to Brookfield, the project no longer had a real estate dimension for SGM and moved away from our core business,  the company said.

Merlin said SGM had helped stabilize the retailer, which he said had faced closure before the acquisition.

 While it was supposed to close in 2023, SGM took over this emblematic department store and invested tens of millions of euros to transform it and make it fully autonomous,  the statement said.

The new owners will face a complex rebuilding effort. Alongside negotiating Shein's exit, they must also work with Brookfield, which is expected to use a portion of the building for redevelopment projects with private luxury apartments rumored to be in the works.