Shein hosted an influencer trip to change their narrative. It partly worked.

Several influencers are facing backlash online after attending a brand trip for Shein, the Chinese fast-fashion company known for producing thousands of garments a day and selling them for the lowest price possible.

In June, a group of content creators were flown to Guangzhou, China and invited to tour one of the factories used by the clothing giant, documenting their experience on their social media accounts.

One of them, US influencer Dani DMC, gave the brand a glowing review.

"It's hard for me to even put into words how this trip has impacted me," she wrote in the caption of her Instagram post. 

"I was really excited and impressed to see the working conditions."

Dani told her 500,000 followers how the US – and Australia and the UK – have been fed a false narrative about the brand.

"I think my biggest takeaway from this trip is to be an independent thinker, get the facts, and see it with your own two eyes," she said.

"I'm one that always likes to be open-minded and seek the truth, so I'm grateful for that about myself, and I hope the same for you." 

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A post shared by 𝑫𝑨𝑵𝑰 𝑫𝑴𝑪 (@danidmc)

Dani and other influencers were brought to tour Shein's "Innovation Factory" – one of around 6,000 factories that the brand uses.

Each post had the same positive language about the fast-fashion giant, despite investigations showing their unethical and illegal behaviour, only as recently as October 2022.

"Like many others, I've heard a lot of misinformation," Marina Sudduth said. 

"I expected this facility to be so filled with people just slaving away but I was actually pleasantly surprised."

@itsdestene_ we’re learning so much about the company! cant wait to get deeper as we continue to explore! @SHEINUS #SHEIN101 #SHEINOnTheRoad ♬ original sound - Destene and Brandon

Last year, the UK’s Channel 4 released a documentary titled Inside the Shein Machine, where they sent an undercover worker to film inside two factories in Guangzhou that create clothes for the brand.

The program found workers had their first month's pay withheld from them, received the equivalent of four cents per item, and were asked to produce 500 pieces of clothing per day during an 18-hour shift. 

With its low prices and incredibly fast production, Shein has become a Gen Z favourite. 

From 2020 to 2022 alone, the company's value rose from US$10 billion to US$100 billion – that's more than H&M and Zara combined.

While Zara has a similar model to Shein – looking at the trend cycle, replicating popular items and selling it for cheaper – the Chinese-based brand can produce the product faster.

They pump out 700-1,000 new pieces a day.

Shein has also harnessed the power of social media, having poured millions into their advertising.

It's hard not to come across a young person recommending their clothes, whether paid to or not.

It's cheap, and it's trendy, they're already sold.

@ventwithdaisy2

£250 SHEIN HAUL 🛍️🫶🏻🫣 - I will post part 2 either tonight or tomorrow! 💞 I have also put all my jewellery away so I will do a “vanity tour” video this weekend 😊 can we also ignore how i constantly call everything “cute” its such a bad habbit 🫣

♬ original sound - dais

In 2021, a CBC Marketplace investigation found that out of 38 samples of children's, adult's and maternity clothes and accessories made by Shein, one in five items had elevated levels of chemicals.

In addition, the brand uses cheap polyester. Their clothes rarely last more than one or two wears before falling apart and being tossed or donated.

If tossed, the polyester can take up to 200 years to decompose. 

And if donated, it's very unlikely the garments will be wearable for the next person.

In May 2023, Shein announced a partnership with Queen of Raw, a global circular economy technology company, to become a fully circular textile economy by 2050.

Their aim is to use the Queen of Raw's software to source existing dead stock from brands and retailers and turn it into new styles. 

Sounds promising. 

Until then, there's a hard truth: Shein's prices are cheap and their styles are on-trend and available before any of their competitors.

That's enough for the young consumer to buy from them.

And no matter the backlash influencers face for the brand trip, they will continue to make more money.

Because you know what they say about publicity.

Feature image: TikTok/@itsdanidmc/@itsdestene_

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