--- description: French President Emmanuel Macron is criticized for his spending habits again — though this time, it has to do with a fancy set of plates title: Emmanuel Macron Ordered a Really Fancy Set of China and People Are Angry image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt818318b97fa85ad5/698933284ee262b9bf31218b/gettyimages-970245686.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [World](/section/world/) ## World Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [France](/tag/france/) ## France Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Emmanuel Macron Ordered a Really Fancy Set of China and People Are Angry  by [Ciara Nugent](/author/ciara-nugent/)  ## Ciara Nugent Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jun 15, 2018 2:07 PM CUT  French President Emmanuel Macron waits to escort the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu after a meeting and a press conference at Elysee Palace on June 5, 2018 in Paris, France. French President Emmanuel Macron waits to escort the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu after a meeting and a press conference at Elysee Palace on June 5, 2018 in Paris, France.Aurelien Morissard – Getty Images  by [Ciara Nugent](/author/ciara-nugent/)  ## Ciara Nugent Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jun 15, 2018 2:07 PM CUT [French President Emmanuel Macron](http://time.com/5306369/trump-macron-friendship-g7/ "undefined") is facing criticism for his spending habits again — though this time, it has to do with a fancy set of plates. Macron reportedly ordered a 1,200-piece set of china from Sèvres Manufacturing, a porcelain factory that creates intricate designs and has been the go-to company for French leaders since the 18th century, according to [the New York _Times_](https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/14/world/europe/emmanuel-macron-france-sevres-plates.html "undefined"). Sèvres is heavily subsidized by the state — it reportedly receives €4 million from the government — and Macron’s order “doesn’t represent any additional cost,” a company spokesperson told the _Times_. And while it is common for new presidents to order their own sets of serveware for official dinners at the Elysée Palace and other events, Macron’s new plates come as he was already slammed for using a [private plane to fly 68 miles](https://www.lexpress.fr/actualite/politique/macron-prend-le-falcon-pour-100km%5F2017429.html "undefined") earlier in the week. The controversy surrounding Macron’s new set of China was initially sparked earlier this week by French satirical magazine Le Canard Enchainé, which estimated that it would cost €500,000, or about $580,000 — far more than earlier reports from the newspaper Le Journal du Dimanche that the plates would cost about $58,000\. Le Canard Enchainé said it based its estimate on the fees associated with making the china, which can take up to five hours per plate, according to the _Times_. “The precise total cost is unknown for the moment, but what is sure is that the final bill will be huge,” the satirical weekly newspaper wrote. “The painful bill should reach or even exceed half a million euros, given the current costs of manufacturing them.” It estimated the cost per plate was about €400, or $464. The controversy over his plate order comes at a time when Macron is trying to distance himself from being dubbed “president of the rich” — even though he is also fielding criticism for [a recent video](https://twitter.com/SibNdiaye/status/1006664614619308033 "undefined") that shows him casually discussing France’s welfare system with a team of advisers. “Look, we put truckload of cash into \[social welfare\] and people are still poor,” he says. “You can’t escape it. People are born poor and they stay poor. Those who fall into poverty stay poor … they have to be able to get themselves out of it.” Some were quick to point that Macron’s plate bill could be seen as “a truckload of cash.” “Macron spends “a truckload of cash” on crockery at the expense of the taxpayer while there are people who don’t even have something to put on their plate everyday! Disgusting!,” Daniel Lerouge from the opposition Socialist Party wrote on Twitter. But not everyone thought Macron’s new China was extravagant. [French Magazine _Le Point_](http://www.lepoint.fr/politique/imbroglio-sur-la-facture-de-la-nouvelle-vaisselle-de-l-elysee-13-06-2018-2226882%5F20.php "undefined") said many would view the President’s plate order positively, as “state support for a heritage industry, and a priceless investment.” ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5313268/emmanuel-macron-china-plates/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5313268/emmanuel-macron-china-plates/"},"headline":"Emmanuel Macron Ordered a Really Fancy Set of China and People Are Angry","datePublished":"2018-06-15T14:07:57.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-23T20:35:09.201Z","description":"He's facing criticism for his spending habits again","url":"https://time.com/5313268/emmanuel-macron-china-plates/","keywords":["France","onetime"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt818318b97fa85ad5/698933284ee262b9bf31218b/gettyimages-970245686.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Ciara Nugent","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/ciara-nugent/"}],"articleSection":"World","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt818318b97fa85ad5/698933284ee262b9bf31218b/gettyimages-970245686.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"French President Emmanuel Macron Receives Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu At Elysee Palace In Paris","caption":"French President Emmanuel Macron Receives Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu At Elysee Palace In Paris","creditText":"Aurelien Morissard – Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/world/","name":"World"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/france/","name":"France"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/5313268/emmanuel-macron-china-plates/","name":"Emmanuel Macron Ordered a Really Fancy Set of China and People Are Angry"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"TIME Interviews Emmanuel Macron, President of France","description":"The newly elected president of France give TIME an exclusive interview.","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/7l8KgeJu/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2017-11-09T03:33:23.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/7l8KgeJu.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/5313268/emmanuel-macron-china-plates/","duration":"PT5M57S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/5313268/emmanuel-macron-china-plates/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```