Shein is once again being called out for her unethical Labor Practices.
Some of you may be wondering why this post is necessary.Isn't it known that SHEIN is one of the worst fast fashion brands?It is easy to fall prey to greenwashing if you are new to sustainable fashion.Shein's social responsibility page is a classic case of greenwashing, and I was asked by several people to address this.
I will be sharing what to look for in a sustainable brand in this post.
I will be looking at the social responsibility page on the US website.I have heard that there isn't an equivalent on every country's website.).
All of our employees are treated like family.We make sure everyone can work in a safe, clean, happy and productive environment by offering above average salaries and benefits, as well as building state-of-the-art factories and offices.
We are in compliance with strict fair labor standards.
All of this sounds great, right?SA8000, which is well-respected factory certification, is one of the standards used by fair labor organizations.
The wording here is notice.They don't say their factories are SA8000 certified.They say they are in compliance.No independent body has confirmed these claims.
It is important to note that not every brand can afford to get certified, but SHEIN is a big enough corporation that it has the resources to do so, if it were actually ethical.The policies they list are great, and they are ones we would expect from an ethical brand, but the problem is that they have no one to back them up.
SHEIN is known to steal designs from other creators.They sold Muslim prayer mats as home decor and a swastika necklace.The swastika controversy divided a lot of people, as it was actually rotating in the way originally used by Hindus, Buddhists, and Jains.They could have intended it to be a religious symbol, as SHEIN is an Asian company.I don't think a religious symbol should be on SHEIN if it goes against a lot of religious principles.
SHEIN has shady business practices and does not provide transparency on their labor practices.
ISO is a set of standards covering the quality, safety, and environmental impact of production processes.Again, this sounds promising, but it is not.
Some of the most popular ISO standards are ISO 9001 and ISO 14001.ISO tells you not to say you are ISO certified.ISO doesn't issue any certifications, and they want you to find an accredited certification body.
They claim to produce in small quantities of 50-100 which reduces waste.Do they mean 100 pieces per style?Do you mean 100 pieces at a time?If you have thousands and thousands of items on your website, that is still unsustainable.
I was unable to find an impartial source about the sustainable nature of digital screen printing, but it seems to be less harmful than regular screen Printing.SHEIN does not state how much they use this method.They say they have begun using an innovative Digital Printing technology to print graphics and patterns onto fabrics.
Shein offers clothes recycling at college pop-up events, and participants get SHEIN gift cards.When fast fashion companies implement recycling programs without other real sustainable measures, I see it as greenwashing.If you recycle your clothes, you can just buy more, right?Shein is not transparent about what is happening to the clothing.How much of it is recycled?What is it being recycled into?If it ended up being trashed, I wouldn't be surprised.
A lot of people think that SHE IN gets more hate than it deserves, as other more expensive fast fashion brands also lack transparency.It is claimed that the disproportionate criticism of SHEIN is classist, as it is one of the most affordable fast fashion brands.
Here is what I think.Yes, both SHEIN and UO are fast fashion, among many other brands that don't get the same hate.Shein is one of the worst because the prices are so cheap that people think their clothes are disposable.The quality of fast fashion brands is worse than other brands, so you end up needing to replace your items more often.
That is not a problem if you are shopping out of necessity.If you have a time problem, please consider looking at secondhand online platforms. I will always recommend shopping used first, but I know that is not always accessible to everyone, due to size or time restrictions.It shouldn't take long to shop online for fast fashion.It is rare for SHEIN to have a wide selection of affordable plus size clothing.
The problem is that the big hauls are done with cheaper brands.I agree that the conversation needs to be more about overconsumption and not about SHEIN.It's a common slow fashion misconception that you're automatically sustainable by purchasing from ethical brands.
Remember that the most important thing is to reduce consumption and treat clothing as a long-term staple.I have fast fashion that lasts me years because I mend my clothing, wash my clothes after multiple wears, and don't use a drier.
If you can avoid it, I wouldn't recommend buying from her.Most of their pieces will either fall apart or go out of style.
I still wear these overalls even though they are not trendy anymore and I take care of them.I don't purchase from fast fashion brands anymore.
To be completely honest, you aren't going to find the same thing in an ethical brand with SHEIN's price point and trendy styles.Because they pay their workers fairly, use higher-quality sustainable materials, have independent audits, and operate on a smaller scale than fast fashion brands, ethical brands need to cost more.Slow fashion is antithetical to trends.Trends only last a year or so, and then clothing is no longer cool, if you commit to wearing them for years and years.
I recommend thrifting or shopping online if you are looking for cheaper and trendier clothing.There are online platforms to look at.
Drop shipping is when retailers sell mass-produced, wholesale items.If the seller doesn't have any original images and the shipping times are long, you can tell the item is drop shipped.
For some size-inclusive, but less affordable options, check out my ethical + sustainable brand directory.
As always, I encourage you to buy what works for you, but to reduce your consumption and take care of your clothes, because these won't be accessible to everyone.
I hope this post helped break down SHEIN's greenwashing.I wrote a post about how to tell if a company is sustainable because it is so easy to be tricked.
If you have previously purchased SHEIN, please don't feel bad.If you can't afford ethical brands, please do not feel bad.Take care of your clothing and reduce your consumption.It is one of the best things we can do as consumers.
I agree that brands need to take responsibility, but they are motivated by money and won't change if we continue to overconsume.Let us call on them to change while being aware of ourselves.
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