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This week, at Première Vision, in the talks area, the session European Fashion Stands Up to Ultra-Fast Fashion took place, where leaders of the European textile and apparel industry presented a united front against ultra-fast fashion platforms.
Mário Jorge Machado, president of EURATEX, Pierre-François Le Louët, co-president of UFIMH, and Olivier Ducatillion, president of UIT, introduced the European Coalition Against Ultrafast Fashion, signed that morning by 22 organizations and addressed to the European Commission.
The warning was clear: ultra-fast fashion already represents 5% of the European market, equivalent to €4.5 billion in sales. In France, the market share reached 7%, starting from zero just five years ago. In Germany alone, in 2024, around 400,000 small orders from these platforms were placed daily. At the same time, the French government imposed fines totaling €180 million for non-compliance with cookie and data protection laws.
Mário Jorge Machado’s Intervention
As president of EURATEX and the voice of the European textile and apparel industry before EU institutions, Mário Jorge Machado emphasized that the issue is not competition, but unfair competition. “We are not against competing; we are against models that avoid the EU’s social, environmental, fiscal, and product safety rules, destroying our way of life and transferring costs to society and the planet,” he argued.
Among the central requests to the European legislator, he highlighted the elimination of the de minimis rule, which exempts customs duties on orders up to €150, offering an advantage of about 12% to ultra-fast fashion platforms.
He also called for tackling VAT fraud, estimated in the “billions” by the European Court of Auditors, and introducing a minimum fee of €20 per order. This fee would help finance border inspections, product safety controls—more than 90% of inspected goods fail REACH regulations—as well as packaging and end-of-life recycling costs.
For the EURATEX president, there is no time to lose. The tax and customs reform scheduled for 2028 comes too late; action is needed by 2026. Otherwise, he warned, countries will take individual measures, as France has already done, whose unanimous legislative example serves as inspiration. He acknowledged, however, that fragmentation is undesirable, but preferable to inaction.
Mário Jorge Machado also called for European harmonization on matters such as Extended Producer Responsibility, avoiding each member state creating different fees that act as internal barriers and harm competitiveness. He stressed that EURATEX maintains regular contact with the European Commission and Parliament, but the issue must rise to the top of the EU political agenda.
The French Voices: Pierre-François Le Louët and Olivier Ducatillion
Pierre-François Le Louët, co-president of UFIMH, recalled that in just five years ultra-fast fashion platforms went from 0% to 5% market share in Europe, reaching 7% in France. He emphasized that this competition is “unfair” because it relies on non-compliance with laws, and noted that the French government has already imposed €180 million in fines on platforms for commercial, cookie, and data practices.
“The industrial leadership of Europe and the defense of our production base are at stake. Dependence on unfair models must be combated, no matter which country they come from. The problem lies in the business model, not the geographic origin,” he concluded. Regarding promises of local production or in Turkey, he was unequivocal: “Opening factories does not solve a model that encourages overconsumption and waste, contrary to the European vision.”
Olivier Ducatillion, president of UIT, focused on the direct impact along the value chain. From fiber production to weaving, dyeing, and finishing, the shift in demand toward these platforms is causing shortages, with finishing companies being the most exposed due to minimum volume requirements. He warned that there are already cases of facility closures.
Ducatillion also recounted a meeting with the president of Shein and highlighted the platform’s lobbying strategy, which includes high-profile hires, local acquisitions, and even partnerships with major brands to gain legitimacy. He considered this practice a risk requiring rapid and firm responses.
He advocated for national emergency measures if the European process is delayed, citing the precedent of the United States: applying a $100 fee per order reduced Shein’s sales by 61% in the U.S. market, though 28% of the volume shifted to Europe.
For the UIT leader, political courage is needed. He urged ministers of key European countries to immediately adopt fees of €20–25 per order and end the de minimis rule, even before a European solution, coordinating efforts between neighboring countries to prevent diversion of flows.
A United Front in Defense of the Industry
The three leaders insisted on a message of unity: the European industry is aligned across about 20 countries and will not accept seeing its industrial base dismantled by business models operating on the margins of EU rules.
EURATEX is already in coordination with the European Commission and Parliament, while national federations are taking actions with local MEPs. The common goal is to convey a unified message and push for an urgent response to a phenomenon that threatens the survival of a large part of the European textile and apparel industry.