It's not the only store on the Champs-Elysees in Paris that stays open past 9 p.m., the official closing time for all stores in the country according to French law, but it's been "stabbed" by labor unions and forced to observe the curfew, says a spokesperson.
It's true that French authorities have ordered Sephora, the international cosmetics chain, to shut its doors by 9 p.m., but other Champs-Elysees stores also break the curfew, including watchmaker Swatch and electronics retailer FNAC, according to Agence France-Presse.
Sephora, owned by Louis Vuitton SA, the world's largest luxury-goods maker, said it will comply but also has filed an appeal, arguing that the late-night hours account for 20 percent of sales in what it calls an "exceptional tourist zone."
In its behalf, some 50 Sephora emloyees attended a court hearing to support the company's position. Of 200 total Sephora employees, 58 volunteer to work late nights for extra pay, but labor unioin activists reportedly complained to French authorities about the arrangement.
Somehow, it doesn't appear that French labor law would get very far in Las Vegas, another bright-light Sephora location of note. We'll have to wait and see how it plays out in the proverbial City of Light.