The Chinese fast fashion giant Shein offers “470,000 models available in real time” on its site, “astronomical” volumes and without common measure with traditional brands, with “disastrous” environmental and social impacts, according to an analysis by the NGO Friends of the Earth in a report published this Thursday, June 22.
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The Friends of the Earth association analyzed daily during the month of May the “new clothing marketed” by Shein and deduced that more than 7,200 new models were added on average per day and this, up to 10,800, with an average lifespan of 65 days on the site. Over the same period, H&M offered 25,000, notes the NGO. The figure of 470,000 models available per day for Shein is even 900 times higher than that of a classic French brand.
The brand ensured in May to be a manufacturer “on demand, able to measure (it) very finely, which makes it possible to drastically reduce unsold items and therefore the production of waste”according to Peter Pernot-Day, head of strategy and public affairs, in an interview with AFP.
This theory holds if “the number of models added each day (is) not so disproportionate”counter-argument Les Amis de la Terre, which estimated Shein’s production at one million garments per day, the equivalent of 15,000 to 20,000 tonnes of CO2 emitted.
Tackling overproduction in fashion
“In 2050, the textile sector would even emit 26% of global greenhouse gas emissions, if current consumption trends continue.“, estimated Ademe in 2022. “It is necessary to tackle the very system of overproduction, by limiting the volumes of products put on sale”in line with the objectives of the Paris Agreement, advocates Friends of the Earth.
Founded in 2012 in China and based in Singapore, Shein quickly conquered the global fast-fashion market, based on the rapid renewal of collections at very low prices, and only sells online, targeting a young clientele drinking to social networks. Accused of forced labor, incitement to overconsumption, singled out for the environmental impact of its products and not very transparent about its production, the brand has drawn the wrath of environmental and human rights defenders.