What Lies Beyond the Shein-Bashing?
The focus on Shein — and to a lesser extent, Temu — creates a false binary, Ufodiama continues. “In reality, fashion brands at all parts of the pricing spectrum operate with pretty much the same models. The legacy high street retailers were once celebrated for their design-to-shop floor two-week cycles, then the digital disruptors came in the late 2000s and poured rocket fuel on that system. Shein simply perfected the model in a more aggressively efficient and profitable way. Sure, they produce more styles and turn them around faster, but the difference here is scale rather than approach.” (On its approach, Shein has previously stated that it is able to achieve such speed-to-market and low prices by operating an on-demand production model, testing new products in small batches of 100 to 200 items, then using real-time customer feedback to automatically restock based on demand, which it says reduces waste.)
Many of the criticisms levelled against Shein mirror — and in some cases, magnify — systemic issues that even luxury is not immune to, says Pousseo. On the narrowed scope of France’s anti-fast fashion law, she says: “We were very surprised to see this law that addressed the whole textile sector just focus on two Chinese giants. What about the [rest of the industry]?”
Some experts also point to a growing anti-China sentiment globally, fueled by the US-China trade war and concerns about human rights abuses in the region. Shein, they say, has to an extent been caught in the crossfires. “As global supply chains undergo another period of restructuring, it is necessary to remain alert to the colonial and geopolitical narratives that may be disguised as environmental concern, so that sustainability does not become a new instrument of power,” says Xu.
Experts are not suggesting that the industry gives Shein a free pass. The criticisms are valid, they say, and the conversation necessary. But to move forward, the fashion industry needs to address the common practices that mass market and even luxury brands share with ultra-fast fashion players like Shein, says Politecnico di Milano associate professor Dr. Hakan Karaosman. “The fashion industry has a track record of exploiting social and environmental resources across supply networks due to its rigid, profit-first logic. Shein may well exacerbate these impacts, but we cannot ignore the fact that the rest of the industry has legitimized such irresponsible behavior in the first place.”
That means reducing overproduction, investing in rapid and widespread decarbonization, and prioritising a just transition, adds Dr. Karaosman. “As long as we discuss issues such as tariffs, decarbonization and microplastics in isolation, without considering their social consequences, many brands will exploit this paradoxical trade-off between short-term economic gains and long-term social costs for their own benefit. The fashion industry needs to wake up and focus on its most important resource: its workers. Otherwise, it will be too late to talk about sustainability in this industry.”
