Shein: why American teens love the Chinese fast-fashion retailer that’s wildly popular on Instagram and sells clothing at rock-bottom prices

Shein has no permanent physical stores but about 13.8 million followers on Instagram, and claims to add 500 new fashion items to its website every day
The fast-fashion company has seen its fair share of controversy: in July, it faced outrage when a necklace with a swastika charm was being sold on its website

Fashion

Business Insider

Published: 8:45pm, 10 Oct 2020

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A Chinese fast-fashion retailer is exploding in popularity with American teens.

Shein, which was founded in Nanjing, eastern China, in 2008, came in second only to Amazon in a ranking of teens’ favourite e-commerce sites in financial services company Piper Sandler’s latest “Taking Stock With Teens” survey.

While Amazon has a large lead – 54 per cent of teens from upper-income households said it was their favourite e-commerce site, versus 5 per cent for Shein – the Chinese retailer beat out American mainstays like Nike, PacSun and Urban Outfitters.

Shein was also first on the list of the brands that upper-income female teens said they’re starting to wear, followed by PacSun and Lululemon.

Piper Sandler surveyed 9,800 teens with an average age of 15.8 across 48 US states to compile its report. The average household income of respondents was US$67,500.

Shein has about 13.8 million followers on Instagram, where it typically reposts photos from influencers wearing its latest styles. The brand is known for its trendy items and rock-bottom prices, with women’s tees priced as low as US$6 and dresses for as little as US$12.

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Shein has said in press releases that it adds 500 new fashion items to its site every day, “spoiling our customers with a dizzying selection of on-trend womenswear that they can mix and match to their heart‘s delight”.

“We do this because we believe that the clothes we wear reflect our personalities and we want to empower today’s women to explore and express their individuality,” the company says.

It also sells men’s and children’s clothing, accessories, and homewares.

Bronte King is one of many influencers who Shein uses to promote their products on Instagram. Photo: Dave Benett/Getty Images for Shein

While Shein says it ships to more than 200 regions around the world, its primary focus is Europe, America, Australia and the Middle East. Its revenues topped US$2.83 billion in 2019, the Post previously reported, citing a WeChat post by the company. Its rivals include fast-fashion e-commerce sites Fashion Nova, Boohoo and Missguided.

Shein doesn’t operate any permanent physical stores, instead hosting a series of pop-ups in various cities.

The fast-fashion company has seen its share of controversy, however. In July, it faced outrage when a necklace with a swastika charm was being sold on its website for US$2.50. Shein removed the necklace and apologised, saying the charm was intended to represent a Buddhist symbol and not a Nazi swastika.

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“The Buddhist symbol has stood for spirituality and good fortune for more than a thousand years, and has a different design than the Nazi swastika which stands for hate – but frankly, that doesn’t matter because we should’ve been more considerate of the symbol’s hurtful connotations to so many people around the world, and we didn’t,” the company said in a statement at the time.

The week before, it faced a backlash when fashion influencer and inclusivity activist Nabela Noor tweeted that Shein was selling Islamic prayer mats and calling them “decorative rugs”. Shein apologised and called it a “highly offensive oversight”.