Shein (then known as Sheinside.

com) is China-based in Nanjing and was first founded in 2008, which was
bought in 2012 by Chris Wu, an American entrepreneur (Faithfull, 2021). It is a B2C fast-fashion brand,
and it was initially a women’s fashion online store. In 2015 it was renamed as Shein and started taking
on markets abroad: mainly Europe, the Middle East, Australia and the US, among other consumer
markets. The brand ships to 220 countries and regions, selling a different range of fashion articles for
women and men (Cuofano, n.d.). Shein’s main target market is international but over the last two years,
it has become clear that the ones who mostly buy from them are Gen Z (Elan, 2021). It has hundreds of
factories worldwide, but in 2019 it was also banned in India due to breaking tax rules, however, it is
making a comeback through Amazon Marketplace (Livemint, 2021).

Today, Shein is a leading fast-fashion and ever-growing e-commerce brand internationally, as Faithfull
(2021) says that it became the most downloaded shopping app on iPhone in September, ranking in the
top 10 not only in the UK but also in Brazil, Saudi Arabia and Australia. It is a widely used app in the UK
since as of June 2021 iOS has had 49.98% of the market share of mobile operating systems in the UK
(Statista, 2021). Furthermore, Shein is the most popular brand on Tiktok, and Tiktok has over 3.7 million
active users in the UK, as well as being downloaded 1 million times a month in the UK (Social Films,
2021).

Shein’s mission statement is “Everyone can enjoy the beauty of fashion”, and they do act on their vision
since most popular brands right now do not have the range of plus size garments at such a low price that
Shein does (Elan, 2021). However, apart from this, Shein is always at the centre of discussions about
ultra-fast fashion and negative environmental impact, as approximately 4,000 added items land in the
online shop daily, which only earns the brand severe criticism (Abraham, 2021).

In this report, I intend to examine why Shein’s success will not decline any time soon due to their
extremely well-done brand communications despite how heavily criticised they are while reviewing their
brand reputation.

The brand is disadvantaged by the allegations it faces as it gets continuously accused of copyright
infringement (Stevens, 2021) and theft of intellectual property repeatedly (TFL, 2021). Another reason
the brand is disadvantaged is because of the accusations (which have been proved) that claim that they
do not pay their workers nearly enough to make a living (Jones, 2021), and for this, Shein is known for
not caring about labourers' rights.

It has been proven that Shein does not supply good workplace conditions for their employees as they
have been accused of using child labour and not respecting workers’ rights, nor paying them a fair living
wage (Wolfe, 2021). They have also not complied with the UK Modern Slavery Act as needed (TFL,
2021), which exacerbates just how severe their human rights violations are. It is important for a brand to
meet not only the satisfaction standards of their customers but also of their employees, as Gotsi and
Wilson (2001) say: “An organisation's reputation is affected by the actions of every business unit,
department and employee that the public come into contact with”. Shein has not been practising this
well, as research conducted by the Public Eye (Jones, 2021) that took interviewing 10 workers across 17
different factories supplying Shein revealed that workers do inhumane hours with often only one day off
per month, violating local labour laws. This is also worsened by the fact that to successfully manage a
brand’s reputation, another way is by making employees “live the brand” (Ind, cited by Rosenbaum-
Elliott et al, 2018 p. 328). This further shows that Shein does not treat its employees with enough
respect or right attitude to encourage good corporate culture.
Shein’s corporate values are to “provide the highest value trendy pieces while also being dedicated to
quality, value and service”. Although it seems as if they maintain strong and clear corporate values, one
of the three strategies to manage brand reputation, the actions of the brand counter what they promise
to deliver, as Shein’s clothing is known for being short-lived and the value for money is not decent at all,
since the clothing is cheaply made (Scam-Detector, 2021). It can then be said that Shein does not uphold
their corporate values at much standard. To add to this, many allegations of theft of intellectual
property can be found online, as Shein plagiarises designs from independent fashion brands (TFL, 2021).
This puts in perspective how their 200 designers are not enough to cover the consumer demands they
receive as an ultra-fast fashion brand.

Shein does do something right, and it is having a wide range of plus-size options, which shows
inclusiveness that not many fast-fashion brands display. Its low prices can be a lifesaver for people on a
budget, which does show that they try to uphold their vision statement, that “everyone” can enjoy
fashion. This influences the intention of buying of customers (Gotsi & Wilson, 2001), as it is a favourable
trait to have as a brand. However, that gets overshadowed by the mass-production it partakes in every
year. It takes vast amounts of energy and water to make as many garments as Shein puts on their
website yearly, and this takes a toll on the planet due to the chemical emissions and microplastics used
(Wolfe, 2021). Naturally, they are one of the most criticised brands in the environmental movement.

The reason Shein is such a fast-growing brand is that its reach is powerful on social media, particularly
TikTok, where the hashtag #Sheinhaul has 3.8 billion views, and where young girls show off the items
they buy from Shein, having spent hundreds of dollars in the cheap clothing (Elan, 2021). This of course
creates a persistent brand awareness that ultimately results in rising sales for Shein according to
Rosembaum-Elliott et al (2018). Shein’s presence on social media is extremely noticeable, and if you are
a young person who uses it regularly, you will learn of their existence. Shein is regarded as one of the
only e-commerce brands that keep up with the ever-changing cycle of fashion, even if this is extremely
unethical of them.

The declared pandemic and following lockdown gave Shein the opportunity to seize the advantage it
needed over its competitors, as everyone was at home, browsing the internet more and shopping online
more often. This meant everything for the brand, as its sales skyrocketed, e-commerce in general
benefitting from the circumstances (Jones, 2021). The brand’s online presence boosted its brand
awareness and engagement. Shein uses social media, like Tiktok and Instagram; its shopping app and its
online website, making the perfect communication mix to reach its audience with tremendous success
(Rosenbaum-Elliott et al, 2018 p.126). Since they are the most popular brand on TikTok, there are
reasons for this, as their strategy of collecting data analytics works wonders for them, and Verhaeghe
(2021) considers them as “experts in targeted social campaigns”. It is also mentioned how Shein’s
content is mainly user-generated. This ensures that consumers see what they want to see from Shein, as
they are the ones who have control over the content that is viral about them, enhancing the user
experience that Shein supplies them with.

Because of their successful use of digital media, Shein is unbeatable regardless of their bad and widely
argued-about reputation. They can position themselves in the minds of individuals in an efficient
manner (Fill, 2012) that ensures that customers will use their shopping services. They are the most
talked about brand on TikTok and use data analytics in a highly efficient way that ensures they stay on
top of their competitors (Verhaeghe, 2021). Even though Shein is known as an infamous brand when it
comes to its ethics, its sales do not decline. This is because Shein collaborates with a range of different
American celebrities and British influencers that popularise the brand among young circles, especially
among young women (Abraham, 2021). This effective use of advertising is highly successful due to the
influence those famous people have on consumers who often form parasocial relationships with them
and want to be like them. This results in Shein’s sales booming. An example of this is the interactive
virtual event by Shein, #SHEINTogether, where they gathered celebrities like Lil Nas X, who attended
among others (Elan, 2021). This celebrity has been exceedingly popular since the pandemic started and
his notoriety is only increasing, which will ensure that Shein’s advertising stays successful.

To avoid so many regular allegations towards them, Shein should reform or rehire their team of
designers that supposedly holds 200 members (Jones, 2021). Another way is to cut back on the mass
production it upholds. Due to the extremely fast garment production that acts as a result of consumer
demands, designers are not able to keep up with that kind of speed and steal intellectual property that
gets Shein into legal suits and copyright infringement allegations.

To avoid human rights violations allegations, Shein should dedicate energy towards bettering the
conditions of work for their labourers. As they claim in their mission statement to make “everyone enjoy
the beauty of fashion” and “everyone” should include their workers who shed light on their poor
conditions at their factory jobs.

These are all very drastic changes for what a fast-fashion brand is, so a rebrand would be advisable if
Shein intended to want to make things right. To achieve this, they should come up with a new concept
that differentiated them from what the “old” Shein is supposed to be. This could include a makeover of
their website, changes to their mission statement or an innovative design that kept them close to the
desired attitude they want to show the market.

There are many reasons for Shein’s foul reputation, and despite this, it keeps its place in the market as
the fastest growing e-commerce in the world as of now, which is a result of effective digital media use,
social media activeness and interactive advertising. These boost audience engagement and brand
awareness, positioning Shein in the minds of customers who will give in to their curiosity and decide to
shop with them. As well as this, the brand includes highly valued traits like low prices and up-to-date
fashion trends that are desired by young audiences without the financial status to turn to more
expensive and sustainable fashion. This serves as a powerful mix that attracts millions of customers. To
conclude, change does not seem necessary for Shein’s success, as their sales do not experience a decline
no matter what scandal they find themselves in. However, if they do want to correct their terrible
reputation, a rebrand is mostly recommended.
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