Should companies like Shein be penalized? France could be the first country to propose significant restrictions and penalties on fast fashion brands like Shein. What does this mean for these brands and customers?
You’re probably already aware of huge fast fashion brands like Shein that sell clothing for extremely low prices, with many pieces costing less than $10.
However, these extraordinarily cheap prices come with a significant cost - from human rights violations to major environmental impacts.
On average, fast fashion brand Shein offers over 7,000 new products every single day, offering over 470,000 different products in total.
It is estimated that Temu and Shein accounted for more than 30% of all packages (valued under $800) that came into the U.S. in 2022.
As of March, 23. 2024, Shein is the fifth most downloaded free app in Apple’s app store.
Over the course of 2023, the Shein app was downloaded over 53 million times by users in Brazil. The U.S. ranked second with over 36 million downloads in 2023, followed by Mexico, where the app was downloaded over 27 million times in 2023.
The fashion industry is responsible for roughly 10 percent of carbon emissions. Shein manufacturers’ rapid use of virgin polyester and oil consumption emits over 6 million tons of carbon dioxide a year.
In an effort to offset fast fashion’s environmental impact, France’s lower house of parliament just approved a bill that would place penalties on “ultra-fast fashion products,” sold by companies like Shein. The bill was unanimously approved, so now it must go to the senate before it can become law. If it becomes law, brands like Shein would have to pay fees of up to 10 euros per item of clothing by 2030. Furthermore, fast fashion brands would be banned from advertising.
According to Shein, their rate of unsold garments remains “consistently in low single digits,” whereas other brands may have higher rates of waste. Shein also said that this law would only hurt French customers.
Ecological Transition Minister Christophe Bechu is a proponent of the bill, saying it would “make France the first country in the world to legislate to limit the excesses of ultra-fast fashion.”
What are your thoughts? Let us know in the comments below!
1 comment
Banning or interfering with Chinese companies such as Shein, Temu, and Tiktok are nothing more than blatant protectionism. Most of the products sold by French companies are made in China. These policies only hurt consumers, increase the cost of living, decrease the standard of living, and are usually unsuccessful in the end.
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