A spokesperson said that its business model “balances consumers’ wants and needs and the inventory process”. Nevertheless, proponents of Shein’s model say that by gathering data on what consumers are buying and then directly feeding it back to manufacturers, they can reduce the production of unwanted items. Shein has issued apologies for these offenses and made a “vow to do a much better job”. Additionally, the company revealed it “formed a product review committee with staff from different cultures and religions” to avoid repeating past mistakes; however, they’ve continued to face accusations of insensitivity and appropriation.
Producing clothes, in itself, negatively impacts the environment in a number of ways. For one thing, polyester — a material that Greenpeace predicts is used in 60% of modern clothing — emits more greenhouse gases (like CO2) than alternative materials, like cotton (via World Research Institute). Also, when washed, polyester releases microplastics (which can take decades to centuries to break down) into the ocean, harming marine and human species when ingested, per The Guardian. Apart from this, the fashion industry is the second largest industry in terms of its water consumption, which makes sense considering that just one pair of jeans requires nearly 2,000 gallons of water to produce (via National Geographic). Shein has headquarters in Singapore and in the manufacturing hub of Guangzhou, China. The company has been accused of using manufacturers that have violated labor rights.
But its packages often take at least a week to arrive in markets such as the UK and US, unlike competitors such as Boohoo, Asos or OhPolly which offer next-day delivery. The company ships orders to its customers directly, mostly from one 16 million square foot warehouse on the outskirts of Guangzhou. The Covid crisis provided the company with a sales boost, says Richard Lim, chief executive of independent consultancy Retail Economics.
As a fast-fashion company, Shein’s practices are innately bad for the environment
Although it’s based in China, the firm mainly targets customers in the US, Europe and Australia with its cut-price crop-tops, bikinis and dresses, costing just £7.90 ($10.70) on average. In sum, there is no doubt that Shein is a Chinese company that has successfully “gone global”. However, in the long term, it may need to reflect on its business practices if it wants to stay on the good side of legal and regulatory bodies in countries like the UK and the US. However, with an IPO thought to be on the way, he could find himself thrust into the spotlight. After posting glowing reviews of their trips, the influencers faced a lot of backlash for ignoring mounting allegations of questionable labor ethics and concerns about Shein’s role in climate pollution. Shein’s own reporting found that its customers are increasingly interested in secondhand.
- The fast fashion giant employs 200 in-house designers, out of more than 7,000 employees.
- CBC reported that lead exposure can damage the heart, brain, kidneys, and reproductive system; and contamination can be especially harmful to infants and children, making the levels found in the children’s jacket that much more dangerous.
- “I’m shocked when [people] say they bought shoes from Shein like bby with that quality y’all are brave lol,” one person tweeted.
- With its motto of “everyone can enjoy the beauty of fashion,” Shein mostly sells women’s apparel but also offers an increasingly wide selection of accessories, shoes, children’s clothes, and menswear.
- Using an army of influencers, from student “campus ambassadors” to reality stars such as Made in Chelsea’s Georgia Toffolo, Shein has amassed more than 250 million followers across its social media channels.
- Shein was recently described as “manipulative” by web design agency Rouge Media, which identified eight prompts on its website encouraging shoppers to spend more money or give away personal data in exchange for discounts or reward points.
Standard shipping can take anywhere from six to eight business days, while express shipping can be delivered as soon as the very next day. While shipping costs between $3.99 and $12.90, Shein offers free standard shipping on orders over $29 and free express shipping on orders over $129. Additionally, if you live in the U.S., you’re entitled to free returns within 35 days of purchase, so long as the products are unworn and in the original packaging. The Chinese brand insists that its method of producing clothes in small batches is more efficient and that little goes to waste.
The people who make Shein’s products are reportedly overworked and underpaid
If Shein chose London, it would be the second-largest IPO in the history of the London Stock Exchange and provide a major boost to the UK as a business https://www.tradebot.online/ destination. As of this writing, H&M’s market cap was about $20.5 billion and Zara’s parent company, Inditex, had a market cap of about $114 billion.
Although much of this growth has been attributed to Gen Z TikTok users, the average Shein user actually skews a bit older, at about 35 years old, and their average monthly spend is about US$100. This suggests that many consumers aren’t using Shein as an option to buy affordable essentials but rather are using its bargain prices to pad out their wardrobes with impulse buys. It has also been accused of copyright infringement and faces lawsuits from the likes of the maker of Dr Martens boots, although the e-retailer has previously denied any wrongdoing. While she admits she has seen comments online questioning the environmental impact of ultra-fast fashion and how much Shein’s workers are paid, she would buy from the company again in future. Fast fashion, which refers to inexpensive and trendy clothes being produced at an inhumane speed to meet public demand, especially damages the environment due to the mind-blowing abundance of clothing being produced in such a short time period.
Initiatives like Shein X have been launched in an effort to support up-and-coming designers
A McKinsey Sustainability article found that clothing production doubled between 2000 and 2014, and people now keep their clothes for only half as long as they did back in 2000. An interim report by the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party found that Shein and online retailer Temu are responsible for more than 30% of all packages shipped to the US every day without payment of import duties. Companies are exempt from paying US tariffs on products with a retail value less than $800 if they are shipped directly to individual customers. US lawmakers have lobbied to delay Shein’s public offering until they can verify that the company does not benefit from forced labor. In May 2023, the company raised $2 billion in funding and some sources say the company is eyeing an initial public offering as early as 2024, Bloomberg reported. Shortly after the company’s $100 billion valuation in 2022, Shein’s sales took a downturn.
Shein X, the retailer’s tutorial programme, recently ran a competition for young designers with a $100,000 (£74,227) prize and fashion collection on offer in a bid to boost its credentials. A senior Shein executive told the BBC that it also has a team reviewing new designs by its suppliers before they reach the website, to try to filter out any infringement issues, which it takes seriously. The fast fashion giant employs 200 in-house designers, out of more than 7,000 employees. Using an army of influencers, from student “campus ambassadors” to reality stars such as Made in Chelsea’s Georgia Toffolo, Shein has amassed more than 250 million followers across its social media channels.
Are Shein clothes good quality?
Before you consider adding another fitted mini skirt or crop top to your Shein cart, you should know a few things. On more than a few occasions, Shein has been accused of ripping off designs from both well-known names in fashion and lesser-known, independent stores and individuals. Analysts have dubbed Shein’s business model “real-time retail” because new designs can take as little as three days to produce, Vox reported.
In an effort to better their reputation in terms of environmental, social, and governance (ESG)issues, Shein hired a group of new executives who aim to change how the general public views the fashion retailer, Bloomberg reported in June 2022. The most notable hire is Adam Whinston, the brand’s new global head of ESG, who is largely in charge of positively changing Shein’s image and introducing a more sustainable model to the company. Even though it’s existed for a while, Shein has really increased its popularity since 2020. Apart from the speed and abundance with which the company updates its website, Shein is also unique in its reliance on social media influencers for marketing. As Wired reported, the brand sends free clothes to influencers, who then make content featuring the items they receive — some of which become the famous Shein hauls — and offer discount codes to their followers, from which they often receive a commission. Shein is a huge name on social media, but there is a lot of information and history regarding the brand that most influencers aren’t mentioning.
People first began embracing cheaply made clothing in the 60s and 70s as fashion trends began to change more frequently and companies turned to offshore textile manufacturing to cut costs, Fashionista reported. In 2015, Xu shifted the business to focus on fast-fashion apparel and rebranded as Shein, pronounced “she-in.” But the company’s rise didn’t come until 2020, when quarantined shoppers gave a boon to e-commerce. Now the company has filed confidentially to go public, the Wall Street Journal reported. Earlier this month, insiders told Bloomberg that Shein is eyeing a $90 billion valuation.
CBC reported that lead exposure can damage the heart, brain, kidneys, and reproductive system; and contamination can be especially harmful to infants and children, making the levels found in the children’s jacket that much more dangerous. Miriam Diamond, environmental chemist and University of Toronto professor, pointed out to CBC that this contamination is not only unsafe for shoppers but also for the individuals actually producing these items. CBC reports that since being alerted of the contaminations, Shein has removed the flagged products from their website and stopped working with the suppliers of these products until they’ve completed their own investigation and taken any necessary action(s). In October 2021, CBC Marketplace conducted an investigation to identify potentially toxic chemicals in products from fast-fashion brands like Shein, Zaful, and AliExpress. Out of 38 samples of children’s, adults’, and maternity-wear clothing and accessories, CBC Marketplace found that one in every five items had “concerning” levels of chemicals like lead, PFAS, and/or phthalates.
After the company publicly denied reports of a rumored IPO, it confidentially filed to go public on Monday, the Wall Street Journal reported. Insiders told Bloomberg that Shein is targeting a $80 billion to $90 billion valuation. Shein is partnering with fellow fast-fashion retailer Forever 21, furthering the retailer’s efforts to expand its product offering beyond Shein-produced items. Forever 21 items will be sold on Shein’s site and Shein is hosting pop-ups in Forever 21 stores. Shein became the largest fashion retailer in the world in 2022 after securing a US$100 billion valuation in a funding round, and it achieved more than £1.3 billion in sales in the UK alone in 2023 according to GlobalData.
In July 2020, a scandal sparked when Instagram and Twitter users — notably Marissa Casey Grossman — shared posts that displayed what Shein called a “swastika pendant necklace” being sold on the website (via Refinery29). There was, of course, almost immediate backlash on social media and, according to CBS News, users accused Shein of anti-semitism and demanded people stop supporting their brand. Shein eventually removed the necklace from its website and apologized on social media, claiming on Instagram that the pendant represented a Buddhist symbol for “spirituality and good fortune.” In 2020, a researcher interviewed 10 people who worked at companies that supply Shein’s products and reported her findings back to Public Eye. She discovered that these supply sites were riddled with fire hazards, such as blocked entrances and exits, second-story windows barred shut, and no emergency exits. She was told that employees worked for up to 75 hours a week, which is not only inhumane but also highly illegal, according to Chinese labor law.