If you are in your 20s or 30s, use social media like TikTok, and are used to buying clothes online, then you must know what we are talking about when we say, Shein. The fast-fashion online shopping app that guarantees anyone can have a complete outfit for just 30 dollars.
But, even though it promises fashionable, trendy, and low-cost clothing it does little to nothing to fight fast-fashion problems like labor exploitation, pollution and even violating copyright. That is why we enlist some of the problems Shein faces in the fashion industry and that will make you think twice before hitting the “add to cart” button next time you are on the app.
You might find interesting: Strange messages have appeared on Shein’s labels asking for help
Shein’s origins are far from the fashion industry
Most, if not all fashion brands, originate with the goal of creating unique pieces of clothing, maximizing their fashion capital, and, in some cases, creating timeless and everlasting pieces. Well, that is not Shein’s case.
The Chinese company launched its site in 2008 with the name of She Inside. It started as a website for wedding dresses and women’s clothing for western shoppers.
Its founder, Chris Xu was not a designer or a fashion expert. When he launched Shein he was an expert in SEO and brand marketing that he applied to create the brand ranking and popularity on the web.
Basically, his main goal was to create a profitable company and he did so. According to Bloomberg, the brand was valued at 100 billion dollars in April 2022.
Disposable clothing
With a daily offer of between 700 to 1,000 new items, according to CEO Molly Miao, it is almost impossible to even have a market for all that clothing, however, and somehow, Shein does it.
This has turned its offer into an always changing and disposable merchandise that is ok to wear once or twice and change for the newest trend next week.
Due to fast-changing trends, producers respond by manufacturing clothes more and more rapidly, which means that designs are not well stress-tested, and cheap synthetic fabrics are used to keep costs low, according to Earth organization.
This has caused an increase in textile production, going from 5.9kg per year to 13kg per year from 1975 to 2018, and is projected that by 2030, the global consumption of apparel will be 102 million tonnes. This, of course, has a huge impact on pollution, and resource utilization like water and greenhouse emissions.
However, the company has defended itself from claims of its unethical and unsustainable model by saying that they took very seriously the environmental impact and the brand “is one of the only large retailers that order 100 pieces or less for new products to help eliminate dead stock – which makes up 10% of the carbon emissions across the entire supply chain for the apparel industry.”
Cheap clothes but at what cost?
Shein promises to help you find a complete outfit for less than 30 dollars but, have you ever wondered if a tank top is so cheap, how much money of it the manufacturer of it is receiving, and even worst? Which are the conditions around that piece of clothing that lets it have a very low price?
In 2019, the organization Fashion Revolution responded to a Shein’s ad promoting a one-pound bikini by claiming that such low prices are just a reflection of how disposable their clothes are.
“Cheap prices make us believe they bring about savings for consumers. This may appear true in the short term, with a narrow focus and looking just at the money in our wallets, but all of us, as global citizens, will ultimately end up paying the external cost, the true cost for the unsustainable consumption and production of cheap clothing.”
The organization concludes, “this is why, when garments are priced as cheaply as single-use items, it implies that our clothing is disposable. And if we buy that message, we are buying into a very ugly side of fashion.”
In other words, low prices and fast-changing trends have changed the way consumers think of clothing and now it is considered disposable. Just one single wear and off you go.
Bad working culture
When factories need to keep up the pace, workers are the ones that pay the toll as a report published in 2021 by NGO Public Eye revealed.
According to the investigation, some of the staff in factories in Guangzhou, China work up to 75 hours a week, when the norm is 40!
Public Eye’s researchers visited 17 factories that supplied Shein and found that some of the workers reported doing three shifts per day and getting only one day off a month. Just remember all those viral videos showing what seem to be workers’ messages asking for help on the clothing labels.
If that wasn’t enough, workers get paid by the piece, not by the hour. This encourages longer shifts and low-quality garments.
There have even been reports of forced child labor within factories that supply Shein. Reuters reported that the company failed to make full disclosures about its supply chain and could not assess factory working conditions or wages.
Shein’s social responsibility page on its website stated that it “never, ever” engages in child or forced labor, but it did not provide evidence.
Copies designs
Many independent and small designers have publicly denounced how the company keeps stealing their designs be it for stickers, pins, and even clothes.
Moreover, is no secret that the brand takes, on some occasions, literal inspiration from luxury brands for its designs.
And even though the theft of the designs is clear, there is nothing creators can do since copyright law does not apply to “useful things” like clothing or accessories.
