Sleek Silhouettes, Flowers and a Protest Mark Hermes Show in Paris

TOPSHOT - Models present creations for Hermes during a show as part of the Paris Fashion Week Womenswear Spring/Summer 2024 in Paris on September 30, 2023. (Photo by JULIEN DE ROSA / AFP)
TOPSHOT - Models present creations for Hermes during a show as part of the Paris Fashion Week Womenswear Spring/Summer 2024 in Paris on September 30, 2023. (Photo by JULIEN DE ROSA / AFP)
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Sleek Silhouettes, Flowers and a Protest Mark Hermes Show in Paris

TOPSHOT - Models present creations for Hermes during a show as part of the Paris Fashion Week Womenswear Spring/Summer 2024 in Paris on September 30, 2023. (Photo by JULIEN DE ROSA / AFP)
TOPSHOT - Models present creations for Hermes during a show as part of the Paris Fashion Week Womenswear Spring/Summer 2024 in Paris on September 30, 2023. (Photo by JULIEN DE ROSA / AFP)

Hermes artistic director Nadege Vanhee-Cybulski evoked a country garden for her spring show at Paris Fashion Week on Saturday, seating the audience among wildflowers and grassy borders as she showed sleek coats, silk skirts and slim, skin-baring dresses.
Models marched down a runway strewn with vegetation, wearing monochrome looks mostly in taupe or crimson, including fitted leather dresses that molded to the body. Coats were also tailored in leather, or cashmere.
The show was briefly interrupted when, about halfway through, a protestor jumped from the audience onto the runway, holding up a sign that called for the label to stop using exotic skins such as crocodile or ostrich hides.
Audience member Bryanboy, a digital creator whose real name is Bryan Yambao and who regularly attends runway shows, leapt out of his seat and snatched the banner away from the protester.
"It's rude to disrupt a show that people have been working on for months," he told Reuters after the show.
"I love an Hermes exotic," he said, gesturing towards his leather bag.
There have been several incidents involving protesters disrupting catwalk shows this season, including at a Coach show in New York.



Shein to Open Pop-up Store in South Africa to Woo More Shoppers

A view of a Shein pop-up store at a mall in Singapore April 4, 2024. (Reuters)
A view of a Shein pop-up store at a mall in Singapore April 4, 2024. (Reuters)
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Shein to Open Pop-up Store in South Africa to Woo More Shoppers

A view of a Shein pop-up store at a mall in Singapore April 4, 2024. (Reuters)
A view of a Shein pop-up store at a mall in Singapore April 4, 2024. (Reuters)

Fast-fashion giant Shein, known for its $5 tops and $10 dresses, will open a pop-up store in Johannesburg, South Africa in August as the online retailer aims to expand its brand recognition in the country.

Shein, founded in China, and its rival Temu have aggressively expanded worldwide as online shopping has surged after the COVID pandemic. They have been accused of exploiting tax loopholes by exporting China-made products in small quantities to avoid higher duties.

Shein will open its pop-up store from Aug. 2-11 as an "exhibition space" for customers to try on trendy fashion and lifestyle products and order them online at a discount, the company said in its South African Instagram post on Tuesday.

Local influencers were tapped for a pre-opening marketing campaign.

Brick-and-mortar and online fashion retailers have urged South African regulators to impose a 45% import duty on all clothing item imports, no matter the price, to level the playing field. Shein, which is planning to go public in Britain, taps a network of largely China-based suppliers which take small initial orders and scale up based on demand.

A Shein spokesperson told Reuters the retailer is engaging with South African regulators to ensure its continued compliance with local laws.

"That said, such tax measures are not critical to the success of our business or the competitive prices we offer our consumers. We keep our prices affordable through our technology-based on-demand business model and flexible supply chain," the spokesperson added.