We all know Shein, the incredibly popular online fashion platform. It began gaining more attention around 2019 and its popularity has steadily increased since then. It seems to be pumping out new and trendy clothes daily. Its prices are also incredibly low which allows people to purchase a bunch of clothes without spending too much money. However, there’s a disturbing reason behind that.

I’ve already written an article on fast fashion, but I want to focus specifically on Shein. It’s the most well-known fast fashion platform with a net worth of $100 billion. Shein is always on top of the latest trends and gets clothes out before the trend dies, which is a big part of why the brand is so popular. Shein uses extremely unethical methods to do this. Their workers are paid less than what’s required to have a comfortable life. They work long hours in small factories and are treated inhumanely. There’s even been rumors of people finding messages like “help me” hidden on tags or in packages from Shein. 

Shein clothes are made from cheap, plastic materials that are not sustainable or long-lasting whatsoever. In addition, the trends go out quickly and the clothes are discarded to landfills. Since they’re made of unsustainable materials, they are damaging to the environment. 

While some argue that Shein is all they can afford, there are other ways to get affordable clothes, such as thrifting or even making some of your own clothes. If you aren’t able to afford high quality clothing, you don’t have to rely completely on thrifting or DIY-ing, but you shouldn’t rely on Shein if there are better alternatives out there.