I've been bombarded with Shein ads, but I've never been interested enough to actually visit the store. Now I know I never will. But I'm 2x as old as the TikTok target group.
I'm guilty of being a SHEIN consumer. I started a few years back when they were not well known. I was shocked by the low prices and fast delivery. I loved it, absolutely loved the possibility to have a new outfit every week. In the last 1 month I stumbled upon a few youtube documentaries on fast fashion and SHEIN in particular. After the first documentary I withdraw all the money off my SHEIN wallet and deleted the app. Honestly... it's a bit addicting. I used to scroll the new clothes before going to bed. Kinda miss that but I'm okay with putting an end to it.
I can totally understand that! Congrats on pulling back, good luck on staying off it too. I have a similar habit on ebay and I avoid the same fast fashion pitfalls by fixing my filter to second hand. Now it's like browsing a thrift store in bed. Xx you might also look at youtube about "shop your closet" which I also get the shopping kick out of.
I absolutely agree to the conclusions drawn here: With every purchase we make a decision that impacts on nature and society. I'd rather buy less clothes, but of good quality so that I can wear them for years.
ikr. I dont get how people cant wear shoes or any clothing more than once. Or maybe they wish to be like the celebrities who they follow as they are shows to have many choices
@@In.Another.Universe I was thinking about that as well and I wonder why celebrities like Katy Perry advertise wearing Shein. They should considerate their impact on their fans more. Personally, those people doing advertisement for Shein lose their credibility.
Sadly higher end brands have been adopting these techniques. (ie. the material literally falls apart within 6 months, usually much sooner) this trend has also spilled over into consumer electronics and appliances . Brands such as Whirlpool, and Kenmore are now designed with a service life expectancy of 3-5 years (for like a $2000 refrigerator and they are refusing to sell parts even with "right to repair " laws having been passed)
@@htopherollem649 which higher end brands? You make quite a generalization from which one could conclude that Shein isn't that bad.... I have many clothes from cheaper as well as more expensive brands and most of them have lasted me for years
@@htopherollem649 Was going to say the same. Maybe there are some really pricey brands of very high quality but there's a lot between very cheap fast fashion to there and much of that is also made in the same sort of way and also doesn't last long, it's just more about the brand being considered more prestigious or being better looking than the cheapest fast fashion.
Zara, H&M and Uniqlo are considered fast fashion, yet here in my country it’s still considered to be quite expensive. Although definitely not a high-end product, it’s mid to upper level for sure.
This is my issue. I'm from the UK where places like Zara and Uniqlo are likely cheaper than other countries but as a student I still can't really afford it. I avoid super fast fashion from places like SHEIN but unfortunately it's just often not feasible to completely avoid fast fashion brands when on a budget.
As a designer (of mostly crochet tops and sweaters) it pains me to see that SHEIN steals the designs of other small shops/creators like myself. So far I haven't been hit but many of my friends have. We work so hard on these designs, only to have them get stolen and sold for $7.
thats so true!!! The question is not how much i have to spend on each stuff - how many do I really need? And lets be honest, nobody needs more than for ex. 5 pullovers...
I think parenting can play a small part. Even if it's just a little. Every day at work I see little kids get whatever they want on impulse. Or are begged to I remember my mom used to talk me through it. Do I need it? How long will I use it. Will there be something else I like better? When when I disagreed, I still thought about those questions for hours after. And now I use that checklist today with some extra steps.
“We are students…low on funds” yet I can see a bag strap with the LV monogram all over it Let’s face it, majority of people who are buying insane amounts of clothing from any fast fashion brand is doing it to keep up with the trends When I stopped following trends and found my own personal style that suits me, I found it much much easier to resist buying new clothes every other week. Not only does this save my wallet and the planet, I found yourself much happier with the clothes I have and didn’t have the “I have nothing to wear” feeling anymore
i agree! everything was much better once I was able to embrace myself and my own taste and i want to spread more of the messge that this is possible and spending large sums of money for something 'trendy' that dies out in a matter of months is not worth it
The issue is honestly that we overconsume… i know damn well the girl that said „why would i pay more when i can have it for less“ buys clothes regularly every month which SHOULDNT be the norm. You dont need 10000pieces of clothing. We need to get back to the mindset where less is more.
This! In the past year I have only bought 2 new items of clothing. A shirt to replace an old one that was too worn to wear anymore, and a winter coat that I'm hoping will last me for many years. I really don't get why people need to be constantly buying new clothes they're probably only going to wear a handful of times (if at all).
@The Cozy Glow no, thinking in terms of less is important. People have no idea what they actually need, and that’s going to hamper sustainable decision making.
100% You don't need a massive wardrobe! What is even worse is chasing after trendy clothes that you either do not fit you or you just wear it once and throw it away!
Also remember, clothes from well known fashion brands and that are more expensive not necessarily means good quality or ethically made too. Just stop over consuming clothes and be mindful with what we wear. Don’t follow fashion trends, they just want you to spend!
exactly! Many "design" brands are using the same labor and materials while charging 10 times what other brands would simply for stamping their logo on it. I've held in my hands a Gucci hoodie that was literally just a regular hoodie but cost 1000$ because it had "Gucci" sown on the chest.
Thank you, like ZARA, here in my country zara is like middle to upper class, is very expensive yet the material are the same quality as forever21 and is 3x more expensive yet look at the tags they are made in bamgkadesh
Exactly! I have some clothes to shein and they are similar to any affordable pieces you'd get on stores. I wear everything I got. Honestly if your taste is that expensive why would you buy a 5$ shirt from them and then complain, did you expect real silk or something?😂 Why don't we criticize the real issue? Overconsumption and people not donating their old clothes
I completely agree. Btw Zara and other more expensive clothing stores are still fast fashion too! even though they’re more expensive. Mid/higher end prices doesn’t equal good quality in the U.S ):
YES! it's very important to say this. I know someone who told me that shopping at shein is bad, yet they buy clothes from forever 21, h&m, etc.. as the top comment said, the only non fast fashion is thrifting!
Not to mention how Shein routinely steals designs and intellectual property from small designers (particularly minority designers) and outsells them before the designers can even do anything about it
intellectual property doesnt apply to clothing in most countries and I seriously doubt shein has it out for specifically minority designers. keep your american identity politics out of this
Love it how you have to tell that the designers are minorities, because if they were stealing from white people then nobody would bat an eye and some people would even encourage it
This makes me so angry because the ones who are usually used as scapegoats when it comes to condemning fast fashion are the people who really have no choice. Not everybody has the means and privilege to afford sustainable clothing. And then there's people doing massive Shein hauls for hundreds or even thousands of bucks, meaning they clearly have the funds to make better, more ethical and sustainable choices but they simply choose not to because doing a massive haul of the latest trends is good content.
There are very few people that "need" to shop at Shein and other fast fashion stores. I get my clothing almost exclusively through thrift shops and clothing swaps, you can find stuff just as cheap. There might be places where this isn't the case, for instance, rural areas where tracking down a physical thrift shop or organizing a clothing swap can be difficult. But the majority of people who buy fast fashion are doing it out of convenience, not necessity.
@@oliviastratton2169 In Brazil its rare when a thrift shop has good clothes, and it's not everyone here that have the conditions to buy good quality clothes, so it's not fair to blame everyone that shops in Shein
@@oliviastratton2169 Thank you, i live in a place where there aren't really any thrift shops plus good quality clothes are only sold in malls where it's really expensive especially in my currency. I honestly have no choice but to buy in fast fashion stores just to get some clothes
@B Luga Right. Because before capitalism, no one ever had poor working conditions. /s Also, isn't this a Chinese company? Hardly a bastion of free enterprise or secure property rights.
As a girl in highschool (I live in the Netherlands) who thrifts all of her clothes (everything except for of course underwear and swimwear), I really hate shein. It is not only bad for the environment, but people also don’t KNOW that it is bad. I see more and more clothes from shein in thrift shops and people just aren’t aware enough of the downsides of fast fashion.
Especially by now there's even online second-hand stores (unfortunately, I don't have many physical thrift stores nearby where I can find clothes that fit me), so it's possible to still have the selection and convenience as well as often lower prices than even shein.
I’m so glad fast fashion brands like shein were banned in India recently, it’s worth the sacrifice since it will hopefully allow local creators to blossom and lower the demand immensely on the unethical factories that make these clothes
India has their more than fair share of unethical practices. It's just that world's focus is kn China right now. If you want to be sure, next time you employ anyone for any handiwork from local, non corporate, company, ask them about health insurance.
@@neelroy2918 wait what? I didn’t say unethical practices don’t exist in India, they obviously do. I just pointed out that banning fast fashion was a good move
@@neelroy2918 but aren’t the apps and outlets how most fast fashion was sold anyway? (Unless you count the stuff developed nations dump here) the brand factory outlet in my city near a mall had to close down because they could no longer order Chinese cheap clothing, neither can any of my friends now get them anywhere here, something we felt pretty bad for initially but later were glad about
To the kids saying they don't have money to buy anything more expensive: just don't. Don't buy it. You don't really need it and it's not worth it. If you want a cheap winter jacket etc, buy second hand, there are mountains of discarded clothes waiting to be recycled or burned
@@filonin2 I sure felt like a pauper when I wore a vintage Yves Saint Laurent overcoat through my teens when my aunt found it in a thift shop. And it sure does feel "poor" to wear handmade custom shoes I had made for me instead of buying 6 cheap pairs. Quality over quantity, not that luxury is really as valuable as the living wages and happiness of other people
So, I’m going to give you another point of view. I’m a buyer from Shein, but I bought 5 peace’s of clothe because my income is small. In my country Shein has small prices but not that small, is like any popular store and most of second hand shops here, just a little bit more cheap. Other point that is favorable to buy in Shein in my country is that up till now all their clothes are high quality than the ones I can find in popular stores for the same price.
An idea, maybe instead of shaming people for buying fast fashion, we instead teach them how to identify quality clothing and how to repair their own clothes instead of tossing them just because a seam bursts.
That’s not the problem. The problem is that wearing last year’s jeans is seen as shameful. And of course, always, PRICES. Why pay more if you can pay less?
@@SaveMoneySavethePlanet Well, part of the problem is that a lot of fast fashion is made in a way that makes it really hard to repair or - heaven forbid - alter.
I think we need to teach people to be appreciative of what they already have. No need to constantly buy new clothes every season. And if you feel the need to constantly buy new clothes then at least donate your old clothes or even put them in trash bags, write “free clothes” on them and put them on the side of the road. I guarantee you they’ll be gone within an hour or two. That goes for anything else that still works perfectly. Especially electronics that you just don’t want or need anymore.
At this point tbh it's just better to buy second hand in charity shops if possible and try to hold on our pieces we have already, and if needed to just repair them
Also as a fashion designers myself who studied for years fashion and brands, I will tell you what was told to me: "paying a lot is often paying for a symbol, not for sustainability". Keep in mind that most stuff you see on red carpets and catwalks is made by hand to fit an artist/model/actress etc but when it comes to prêt a porter in high end fashion brands is mostly made in foreign countries. The only way to buy sustainabily is to look for certified B Corp brands or from local taylors or even second hand as I stated before, or if you have a friend... closet swapping is a good solution
We need to stop treating climate change like it's an individual problem. It's the corporations we need to be talking to, not trying to dish out responsibility to poor/broke people. Katy Perry and the like have no excuse, but MOST people cannot afford to spend $80 on one piece of sustainable clothing. Edit: U can argue until u turn blue, but the fact is 100 energy companies are responsible for 71% of **ALL** emissions.
Good point. We barely produce ~30 percent of the world's greenhouse gases while the big corporations produce the rest. While action should be taken to lessen climate change on our part, focusing and shifting all the responsibility to us while ignoring who contributes the most is a lie perpetuated by capitalism.
You can't regulate a polluting corporation in China or US or whatever, they lobby and has huge resources; but you can as an individual chose not to buy clothes from them.
No one is saying that in order to stop buying clothes in this kind of stores, the only solution is buying designer. Absolutely no. There are other options like thrifting stores which have the same/lower prices than Shein. So there are no excuses to continue buying in this kind of stores.
Climate change is an individual problem though. Corporations will produce whatever is in demand and whatever the laws we decide through voting in democratic elections allow them to. Excessive consumerism is the problem but nobody wants to hear that.
As I have gotten older, I highly value the quality of a well made piece of clothing. I've been buying a LOT of made in the US clothing. I want the opposite of fast fashion. I want to buy clothes that maybe can last me the rest of my life.
@@davidlguerr exactly. I like supporting local, and if I can’t, I’m at least going to buy the best made longest lasting thing I can find. Especially with things like jackets, sweaters, button ups, hats, etc. I’d rather buy one expensive jacket I’ll keep forever vs 5 cheap ones that I throw away or donate after a couple of years.
Everyone around me buys Shein. Now, I do understand the fact that why go spend more when you can spend less. And it is true that not everybody can afford better brands and that almost all brands work like this nowadays. Honestly the reason I never gave in to Shein or other stuff is because they also steal artists work. I mostly thrift my clothes, or don't buy at all. If I have to, I stay in between my budget by trying to polluting less. My advices especially to young people are: - don't buy what you don't really need - don't buy what you don't really like - buy what lasts - buy versatile, basic essentials clothing to mix and match - only splurge once in a while and try to make it a good sustainable one - swap clothes w friends, relatives etc or thrift them - ignore the urge to mass buy you don't need that many clothes
It's just hyper-consumerism targeting a age demographic that is known to indulge in it. Alot of these issues come from not knowing when to stop because the phenomenon of the digital age.
Clothes swap is highly advised, a friend gifted me her old long skirt (to use as a poncho) when I gave her my jacket. I ended up enjoying wearing that skirt with shorts under around the house. Sadly, it is harder now that I don't have many friends near by plus pandemic :(
Exactly. I can't afford nice clothes so I buy some things on Shein. I have a few pairs of pants, a few sweaters, and that's it. I'm wearing my other clothes for 10 years ago. If I had the money, sure I'd buy about 10 quality pieces and a few shoes, and that would be it. I'm poor, and that's just the reality for some of us. The problem is people who can afford better clothes but buy massive amounts on Shein, then make a youtube video, thus making their money back or more. It's not Shein's fault, nor any other fast fashion retailer. It's typical human greed.
That's not true. I'm sorry. I know it's inconvenient to hear, but when you buy from a business that uses unethical labor and manufactures poor quality garments that will wear out and become landfill in a very short period of time, you are supporting that business model and you ARE contributing to the problem. Textiles are EXTREMELY resource intensive to produce. The fabric, the dye, all the transportation involved. It uses a lot of water and produces A LOT of carbon. And that's before it even gets turned into clothes! Shein has 600,000 styles on its site. That's millions of garments. Think of all the carbon spent shipping all those things from China to average people, who're buying an average amount of clothes, who feel absolved because it's not "a haul". I'm not trying to make you feel guilty because we've all bought fast fashion before, but recognise that your choices have an impact and that you DO have power as a single consumer :)
@@taebby78 That's a very good point. I have way too much clothes and I want to try and downsize to just a few pieces of clothing, but I don't know anyone, besides Goodwill, who'd want them at the moment.
the problem is everyone who buys their clothes at shein. if you want cheap clothes you can thrift and they will arguably still be a better quality than what u can get from shein. on top of that u can upscale, tailor, and fix the clothes u find if they arent perfect to you. buying more expensive and higher quality clothes less often is also more sustainable than shein and helps fight the crazy consumerism that is running the fashion industry today
Well, they are not that much different from big fashion brands. But there is one big difference: you pay cheap. With big fashion brands you pay a premium price, and they have the very same conditions and wages for workers.
And that sir, increases volume which increase emissions. To put it in perspective, entire USA is 15% of global emissions. And fashion, yes freaking fashion, that's clothes we wear so protect us from elements is 8-10%.
Yeah and it's the same quality ! My H&M shirts get bigger because the material acts like you tried to tear them apart so they are soooo fragile and badly sewn and they get holes and my DCMJ jeans are not the same quality at all as my mom's jeans who could last decades (too bad it's not my size :( )
@@gargoyle4807 It depends on how you handle them too. If you wash them by hand, and not dry them using machine, they would last much longer. If they bigger you can't do much but if they get torned you can fix them. If you have small holes you can rafoo afu them instead of throwing them out (search youtube for "How to do Rafoo on Clothes with Machine"). This is being used in developing countries. You can put the pressure on brands to make them durable but you can also do these things meanwhile.
@@neelroy2918 (I don't throw them away, I sew them or wear them differently like my torned crop top with a vest) I will watch the techniques you are talking about
Need more content like that. We europeans are not aware of the consequences that our acts have on other countries. For every item we buy, a person has put energy on it. Are we helping this person have a good life as we want it for ourselves?
@@paranoah1925 If clothes that cost X times more also lasted X + 1 times longer i would be interested, but the cost doesn't equal how long it lasts. It is close enough to the same that just buying what i need within my small budget and using it up means i use very close to the same amount of fabric.
Well I think that’s not about the lack of content or knowledge, because even since I was a little girl I’ve heard things like “you can wear this t-shirt because of little Asian hands that made it”, it’s rather a common knowledge. And It’s not hard to look at your tags and see “made in China/Bangladesh/Sri Lanka/Indonesia” etc. I think most of Europeans know that in the back of their heads, but it’s just more comfortable to look away from the truth and get rid of guilty conscience. It’s really not hard to get these information. They just choose not to get them. Do you want to know the reason? It’s ignorance and selfishness.
@@hillockfarm8404 i mean look at stuff like shoes. i would much rather buy myself a pair of real leather dr martens for 300$ than buy 100$ sneackers. i know dr martens are far from the best out there, but their shoes easily last me 3 to 4 full years and are still usable. where as those 100$ sneackers will last me half a year max, if i wear them constantly.
@@altertopias Unfortunately second hand is now also saturated with fast fashion which was worn zero to few times. While the real vintage stuff sometimes costs more than it did when it was new (not even high end brands, just normal denims etc).
i am a 13 year old who found shein and got exited by the aesthetic quality of the clothes, my dad then told me all this and i was disgusted by the horrors that some people can do!
I'm very proud of you young ladies for setting a good example, by not purchasing from Shein, after you found out the bad practices they do. That's what makes a great leader, leading by example! ❤️
It's also important to remember that some of these "influencers" buy those clothes JUST to take pictures and post and then get rid of it. Also, it is not every country that has nice looking plus size clothes, shein is inclusive. Where I live, there's a sustainable denim store but the prices are between USD80 and USD200, a person who lives on a minimum wage can't afford that, they also need to eat, pay rent, pay bills.. and with that money, they can buy a lot from shein. The problem is not only Sustainability but also Consumerism.
I was looking for this exact comment, when I gained weight due to a medication that I was taking, I was pushed to SHEIN as my only option because of how size inclusive AND beautiful their clothing was, I started working hard to lose weight to use my old clothes again and avoid further shopping with them but in the end I WAS pushed to buy it because no other stores locally had clothing of my size that didn't make me feel like I had to hide my body or be shamed for it.
I think the bigger issue is the amount of clothes and why. I don't mind if someone needs to buy from shein, I did it once too cuz I wanted cheap clothing. The bigger issue is the amount people feel the need to buy because it's cheap.
The problem is consumerism and how it drove us to believe we need tons of clothes ( I was and in a way still am one of those too) but till just some years ago ( the ninetees even) each person owned like 5 pair of jeans max and they all were pricey because fast fashion as we actually know was not there yet, if you spend 80-200 dollars a year for one pair of good jeans, made with organic cotton, that will not harm the planet and the people but also not harm your health with those chemicals in a few years you got enough jeans to last almost a lifetime, taking care of clothes is a practice we have lost too, mending, repairing and taking good care in washing and drying can add a lot of years to clothes. This said if you ( I mean a general you, not you personally) can't or won't stop buying fast fashion at least don't let it be single use but make it last as long as possible. I will start making carpets out of clothes that went too far away ( unfortunately I own a lot of fast fashion from before understanding all this) to make it last as much as possible and not go to waste
Once we don’t force ourselves to keep up with trends, then we are truly free from this hamster wheel of needing the next new thing. And that takes time and education, as well as self respect.
People do get off the hamster wheel as they age but fast fashion companies is targeted toward young people (especially women) who is always the same as previous generations.
Buying many clothes isn't limited to trends. I am never in Trend but I just love all these second hand clothes. And I don't have a fixed style. I feel like something different every day. That's why I have way too many clothes.
@@johnl.7754 I think the age thing was true up to perhaps a decade or two ago. Older people (40's, 50's, 60's) buy fast fashion. Look around any large city and you will see people of all ages wearing stuff from the same store. Look in the shops and you see a whole range of ages. There used to be a fashion-age that ended around 30yo or with the arrival of the first child or even marriage. Now, however, eternal youth is connected to clothing and so people will wear trendy clothes to feel young.
Trend cycles are also getting shorter thanks to tiktok. A year ago everyone was on the 80s-90s aesthetic and now we're seeing a Y2K revival. Tiktok overexposes some trends so quickly that people get sick of them and move on much faster than they ever used to do before social media.
So happy to see this topic being covered more! I’ve never bought from Shein and don’t intend to. Not the mention there was a recent report showing many of their clothes contain toxic chemicals in levels that can be harmful.
A big part of the issue is that a lot of people don't get paid enough. Sustainable clothes are expensive, and the styles available are limited. I tried to be as environmentally conscious as I could but I can't spend ~£100 a piece when I only have a ~£200 budget for luxury outgoings (eating out, transport, subscriptions and clothes).
The problem is that because the products are cheap, people overconsume and overbuy. You found a cool piece of cloth on SheIn and want to buy it? No problem. The problem comes when you buy 20 items at a time when you absolutely don't need it.
Most people buying from shame have money, they just want more bang for their buck at the cost of the environment and workers. Shoppers buy so often that it shows you money isn’t the problem, it’s greed.
Remember that there’s still apps like Vinted (which for me is an even cheaper alternative to Depop) and online thrift stores that you can use to fill the shopping void, with many vintage and one off items for a decent price. It will never be SHEIN prices but it really does feel a whole lot better shopping sustainably and knowing that you’re not contributing to whatever environmental mess that company makes !!
I agree in part, but vinted is also a means of making us feel better about ourselves for wearing something once or twice and then buying something new, selling the ‘old’ item.
@@cellocello1762 theres plenty of people (like me) buying second hand from vinted and continually wearing them - so it does help (I hardly buy any fast fashion anymore, except for swimstuff and underwear)
I tried to buy several times in vented but the sellers didn’t respond to my messages. It’s really discouraging when you try to do better but this is the way you are treated. While waiting for at least one response my friends recommended me to buy from shein, but because my main goal was be more conscious I am still waiting for a reply
one thing i can respect about shein is their size inclusivity. as somebody with a low-income who is plus size, i’ve had shein be my only option for clothing for events. it’s the only time i shop there and i feel so guilty, but there aren’t other options. i think it’s okay for people to shop there who need to, but buying a $2000 haul that you’re gonna put in the trash is awful
I'm with you on that! I'm a plus size too and locally I just don't have any options, only really expensive ones that are not necessarily to my taste.. it's been a couple of years now that I simply avoid local physical stores and buy only from SHEIN, because they have so many options in every size. And I feel guilty about it but when I try on clothes in local shops that reminds me of why I order from them..
i think it is fair enough. As long as you don't buy huge quantities, just because it is trendy and "chic" or "cute", it's fine. Consider thrift stores as well, if you have any nearby.
I'm 26 years old and I've never shopped from Shein. I have always wanted to have quality clothing. That's something which my parents have taught me. Before the pandemic, I used to be very fond of buying denims but lately as I became more aware, thanks to you and others like you, I buy very less. I really hope people of my age start realising the cons of fast fashion!
same, I'm still in highschool so I live with my grandmother and all of my wealthy classmates order from Shein, because they can wear different clothes almost every day. I may wear the same thing for a long time but at least I won't be worried about where it's from and how it's made
Yep my parents taught me the same thing. I bought one of those Sherpa jackets from Shein and it had no structure to it like it was falling apart so I sold it for $5 and never looked back. My bf and friend were raving about the low prices Shein offers but I know it’s just too good to be true. I’m trying to figure out how I could make under 30 classic/long lasting clothing items work in my closet and just mix and match and keep them for at least 5 years. Do you shop at any stores that are relatively affordable with the qualities that I mentioned?
For all of yall who are on a tight budget, I highly recommend going thrifting or using online thrift stores. There sustainable, cheap (not shein cheap but cheap), and way more fun then scrolling on an online website. Plus the quality of the clothes are definitely better than some shein new hunk of colorful plastic.
I agree! What I had to do was to learn about sustainable and high-quality materials. I go thrifting looking for cotton, cashmere, linen, wool. And, for the most part, I stay away from acrylic, polyester, rayon. The natural materials last longer and, in the cold Canadian winter, are much warmer, but they can also be very expensive unless thrifted. I have found many cashmere sweaters for under $10 at thrift stores. It's also so wonderful to be able to try new styles and silhouettes without spending exorbitant amounts of money on trends.
@@vampirexion I haven't shopped at any online thrift stores but I have heard Thread up is pretty good. It definitely has size 16 but I would look into it.
@Google user what‘s the alternative? Only actually poor people should be allowed tp shop at thrift stores? How about we put the blame on thrift stores that are profiting off of the trend and raising prices and not the people who are trying to be more sustainable and shop 2nd hand
@Google user well there's tons and tons of unwanted clothing FROM thrift stores going to waste being shipped to some developing country. as a former thrift store worker, that is not the primary reason prices get pushed up. prices get pushed up becuase profits are necessary to pay staff and fund charities. I suggest EVERYONE shop at thrift stores because what's happening is just perfectly good clothing all going to waste. There is nowhere near the demand that should be happening.
I find myself somewhat pinned to a wall financially, so I do shop at Shein, but I make a habit of not throwing out stuff (I trade stuff with friends usually) and try to buy smart. I hope by creating less waste at least the damage I am doing is less. I am 24 and still have clothes from when I was 16.
I don't want to burst your bubble but giving these componies ANY amount of money contribures to them continuing to pollute the earth. As someone who comes from a financially difficult background myself, I understand how incredibly hard it is for people with low income to consume in a environmentally and ethically friendly way. What helped me was to write down the options that are available to me, from second stores to flea markets to ethical brands, and to see what works for you. A lot of the times, you will profit so much from these choices as you will be able to find more durable and higher quality garments for the same price as these fast fashion stores!
@@jessicaschira4861 no thats not bursting my bubble its actually very helpful! I am moving to the USA soon and I have been told there is more choice there than Canada so maybe there is a good chance I can take up your suggestion
I'm 22 and I have a courduroy jacket that my sister (who is 7 years older than me) got when she was in middle school! So that jacket is close to two decades old and it's still going strong. It's really satisfying to know that a garment you regularly wear has been used for so long!
My pet peeve with people complaining that they can't afford trendy clothes otherwise is that it's basically all middle class people. Lower income people understand that they need to buy a few decent things, and they need to last, or buy second hand. You have to have some means to make a habit of buying throwaway clothing. I feel like that's something that needs to really be stressed. People like to say, "Oh, but I can't afford Zara for cool clothes" (or wherever.) but then they buy four tops that they'll only be able to wear a handful of times each. A piece from a somewhat better quality store is going to last longer. We really need to stress buying fewer quality pieces. You'll look better. It's better for the planet. It's better for workers. Everything you buy should sting a little. If it doesn't sting a little, it means you need to be saving up to buy something a bit better.
Yeah. I think middle-class people aren't very class-aware. Their idea on whether they have much money or not is not based. That's a good tip at the end. I'm gonna take it with me.
I think another thing is that even if you must buy from fast fashion, it doesn’t mean you have to contribute to over consumption. Some people in these hauls buy more clothes at once than people have in their closets. It’s an insane amount of stuff that surely one doesn’t actually derive much pleasure from after their initial arrival. I think at least taking steps to cut down on the amount u buy could be good as well
I disagree. With the recent trend of upper classes thrifting, many thrift shops have taken an advantage to this and have greatly increased their prices. Thrift shops have been gentrified. This makes it difficult for people with low income to just “buy second hand” and when you can have new, trendy clothing for a fraction of the price of something that is second hand, it seems convenient and reasonable to order off of SHEIN. I don’t blame people for doing so because it’s affordable, not everyone has the money to buy something that stings every time. Many of us live paycheck to paycheck and it’s difficult enough as is it.
I kinda disagree because at least in my country, the lower income usually buys any clothing that looks good and very cheap although the quality is poor. This is because they have no choice, as long as they have something to wear then sustainability/quality is out of question. Usually the ones with the awareness of quality etc are the (upper?) middle income.
I have not shopped at Shein, but I have been hearing about it more and more through random people/celebrities that I follow on social media like Instagram. I was curious about it, so I watched this video. Very good work on reporting on this! Thank you!
Yes, I've heard about it from some friends. Every now and then you see these white bustiers coming full of clothes and accessories of all sorts. All to do some Tik-Tok, a few posts on Ista, or bought just because they are cheap. I felt that something was wrong and I immediately worried about the quality, the origin, the welfare, and this video confirmed them. I write as a low-budget college student who has been wearing the same clothes for over 6 years (and I still like them). Just to remember: if you have no money, the greenest thing is NOT to buy.
I roll my eyes when I see comments claiming you need to buy expensive designer brand clothing for it to be durable... Even fast fashion brands like Shien, Zara, and H&M have durable clothes if you just look for the clothing made with good material - although you may have to pay a slightly more premium than the $3 price tag. Stop feeling obligated to purchase luxury brands because that's simply marketing. The best recourse to this situation is: buying less clothing, becoming more knowledgeable about durable fabrics/materials so that the clothing you do purchase last at least for a few years, and finally thrifting or wearing second hand clothes. [An additional and helpful investment would be learning how to sew so that you can make repairs on softer damaged clothes, making them last even longer]. It's bizarre when people blame "fast fashion" (usually equating it to affordable clothing companies like H&M and Zara) for environmental problems when it's consumers purchasing an excessive amount of clothing that's the issue. I.e., if luxury goods were as cheap as SHEIN, it would create a nearly identical problem as SHEIN. The only reason why luxury brands are not included in this discussion (when they should be) is because there is a much higher cost of entry on how many and how much people are willing to spend for the products, which doesn't say much about how the companies, themselves, are tackling this issue. People should treat clothing like food: you're not going to know you're purchasing healthy food by looking at the brand or the price tag of the item, but you will know if you look at its nutritional label. Likewise, if you want durable or environmentally friendly clothing, look at the material of the clothes. Furthermore, you can't just eat an inordinate amount of healthy food to be healthy; you need to diet properly to be healthy. Therefore, if you want a healthy environment, be mindful of your purchases. Finally, regarding sustainability in terms of "business ethics": I'm sorry to say but most luxury brands still use imported materials from sweatshops when they can definitely afford not to. Sure, the clothing may be made in countries with better working condition, but the material, itself, is usually going to be the same as those used in sweatshops. So, please, don't be deceived when you see a "Made in Italy" label thinking the entire product was made in Italy because that just means the product was manufactured in Italy; it does not mean the materials were from Italy. The only way to know for sure is if the company has transparency over its supply-side, which won't be the case for nearly all, if not all, large clothing companies, including luxury brands.
I agree. I bought shein Once because they have pretty plus size dresses in affordable prices. My size is like 14/16 US size, and it's hard to find in Asia, unless you want fork over ten times the price at Zara. Don't even talk about high-brand goods. I bought three items and it has lasted 4 years or so and I will still be wearing them for much longer.
wow knowledgeable thanks for this post so your advice is : 1) don't base the quality of clothes on its price, but on its fabric 2) buy less 3) learn to sew 4) don't be fooled by labels like made in italy
Finally a smart comment 👌🏻👌🏻... Pd I have seen another documentary from this same channel, where they captured how evern luxury brands are manufactured in the same places that shein does, the only difference is that the labels and packaging are put in Europe 🙄
Honestly, I think one issue that's really not being adressed here is the lack of affordable clothing, I went clothes shopping for the the first time in a few months, and the price of clothes literally changed directly in order of magnitudes. At the cheapest shop I could get a jacket for 18 quid, at another shop across the street they sold jackets for 800 quid, and on one other it was 80 quid. Obviously I ended up getting the 80 quid one, but if I was someone with a slightly lower budget I could've perhaps gotten one for 50 quid that was still comparably more well sourced and well made than the 18 quid one, and since I had a slightly higher budget I might have spent 150 quid on a high quality jacket meant to last 10 years rather than only expensively branded ones being available in that price range. These days even to get a slightly higher quality you generally have to pay 10x more.
I disagree. While it is an issue, it is too complex of an issue to be able to "fix". It needs to be normalized for people to start paying more for clothing that is ethically sourced/created, environmentally sustainable, and higher quality so that we can get out of this fast fashion mindset. I understand not having the money to afford a lot of clothing + wanting to follow trends as someone who is younger but that is still completely doable while likely even being able to spend less annually. The issue is regulations and buyers not being able to find information about the pieces they are buying. In my opinion there needs to be some sort of "ingredients" label like there is with all food now. What the pieces are made out of, where that fabric was sourced from, how it was made, and the impact it had on the environment to create the article of clothing. It is next to impossible to find these things out as buyers currently, and even if we could, no one is informed enough about the topic to know what it all means. And even THEN, people think buying the cheaper clothing item saves them the most money when that has literally never been reality.
Look for quality and get them when is on clearance. I recently bought a light down jacket for $137 regular price is over $350. It was end of season sale 40% off and an additional 40% off since the store only have one left. 850 down fill very good quality. I also buy all of clothes when it is at least 30% off. Most Levi's jeans is around $80 but on sale I bought them at $39. Never paid regular price
They're good for kids clothes. I get my younger siblings stuff from shien cause when they're all rapidly growing out of everything it's a handy affirdable option you can just donate once they've outgrown. Not to mention the kids clothes are cute so they love wearing them. Quality is always a hit or miss tho
@Professor Frog That's why I buy clothes that's never out of fashion and still look good. Classic nice looking blank T-shirt with pair of jeans or shorts. Hoodie, good qualify wool sweaters, button shirts. Already buy clothing that fits you body type and looks good on you. Never buy into fast fashion coz after a year you will look ridiculous with those clothes (super skinny jeans come to mind).
I personally have made a commitment to never buy from Shein and I have so far succeeded but I will admit it is hella tempting. With prices so cheap, so many options, and any piece that I’ve ever dreamed of having being on there, it’s difficult to not fall into the company’s trap. I would say 90% of my clothes come second hand from thrift stores and I’m pretty proud of that. I personally do buy a lot of clothes cause my style changes constantly but I feel better knowing that my pieces aren’t supporting companies that take advantage of workers and add onto climate change. Overall I’m glad thrifting has become more mainstream but I think it needs to become even more so. It’s cheap (depending on the one you go to) so low income families or individuals can afford it, there are lots of options so you can usually find something similar to what you’re looking for if you go regularly, and there are nice/high quality things there. I have found so many things from banana republic, Ralph Lauren, north face, etc that were all in decent quality and sometimes even new. Overall it’s a choice you have to make and it’s not as hard as you think
from what i gather, a lot of people still shop fast fashion bc it's cheaper, carry more sizes, or that they simply dont have access to good thrift/secondhand store and i understand their situation. when i was studying abroad where i had access to good thrift stores, i hardly ever shop fast fashion. now that im back to my country, thrift stores are no longer accessible. we only have online curated thrift stores with ridiculous price tags. what i think is problematic is the excessive consumption done by the ppl who can obviously shop more sustainably but spent thousands on multiple shein hauls just to throw them out in the next 2 weeks.
I’m a Boomer, shop at recycled and consignment fashion stores, rarely buy online. Never heard of Shein… but I’m glad for this report. It gives perspective on the depth of mind-control manipulation used by companies focused entirely on profit.
Jehanna Blondeau La boomeuse you must be Québécoise.. consignment fashion stores are something i remember hearing about as kid and i am the child of later years boomeurs.. there is like one per city in the western hemisphere .But as we age we actually need less clothes and we tend to opt for what's comfortable and less showy. it low key makes sense that you'd shop less online . i can understand why kids these days buy clothes like McD , its like the urge to knock the boots 7 times a day, everything is heightened. its so hard to stop them . they are frying this planet to ashes.
yeah! laws more engaged wit our current issues in the environmental aspect. And educate childrens and young people that buying items which will make you look "cool" is not actually "cool", you can make gorgeous outfits with second-hands or DIY items.
Modern slavery just exits in more or less every industry and is a darkside of himanities. It may not be eliminated from the world, but we humans continue to combat work slavery and defend human rights.
Ahh yes, this one is so much more brutal than one can imagine. I was shook to the core when I found out about it a few years back. Just absolutely horrible.
i really recommend for y'all to look into communism or at least socialism. we can never be sustainable under capitalism because you can't really make profit off of sustainability. the only way to save the environment is by changing the whole system
hard to say , cuz now let's say if these company didn't hire them what are they gonna do? they do this because they didn't have much choice if they don't do it others will that's the problem.
The biggest reason why Shein packages have come to our home is because my daughter is a young plus size woman and Shein's curvy clothes for women are cute and true to size. It's very difficult for a young woman to find plus size clothing that doesn't look like it's made for grandmas. Hopefully someone will come up with attractive and ethically sourced plus size clothing soon!
@@maple_vanilla Actually, when I found out about the horrible world of fast fashion in a documentary, I did find a company that produced its clothes in the US, that were made of organic cotton and bamboo as well as shirts that were made of organic hemp. I bought in bulk and have 24 identical shirts that I wear all the time. But I'm not plus size or in my late teens or early 20s. I tried getting shirts for my daughter there, (I believe I ordered 12 or 24 of them as well), even though they said they were a 2XL, they still didn't have the right fit. When clothing is made bigger to be plus size, most companies don't account for how they need to change them aside from making them wider. They're a lot more options for me than there for my daughter. If I order a shirt in the right size, more often than not it's going to fit me just fine. If she orders a shirt in what is supposed to be the right size, more often than not she's going to have to return it.
Yeah or do what me and most people do get some exercise it does not matter how good your clothes are if you look like Jabba the hut I mean being 5 or so kilos over weight is fine plus who cares about fashion the only thing I care about is what can you do not what you can buy
@@smeagol7247 what are you even talking about? Exercising does not necessarily mean you will lose weight. There are many factors in weight gain and loss such as medication, metabolism, certain illnesses and conditions, and lack of access.
Yes! In my country xl biggest size you can get. And it’s not true to size. Sometimes I can fit in xl sometimes it’s feels like m. Only on shein I found that 0xl fits like a glove. I can finally buy cute dresses and jeans
@@fart63 AT LEAST TRY! it might not make you lose weight but it's not like it's gonna harm you, everyone should excercise whether they are "Plus Size" or not. -Me being *obese* most of my life. Losing weight was the best _decision_ of my life. And excercising lowers the required caloric deficit threshold for losing weight, look, some people have disorders, but being overweight is not good for anyone's health
Take it from me-as one of few guys with lots of high end stuff in closet, that higher prices don’t automatically mean higher quality, although some of my favorite clothes that cost ridiculously high amounts HAVE LASTED through tons of dry cleaning and usage compared to cheaper items. I didn’t even know about this app until coming across this article.
I'm a 70-year old Boomer. Yes, I've heard of Shein - through documentaries like this one. No, I've never bought anything from them. I shop at bricks & mortar stores, which frequently are also secondhand or thrift stores. When I buy online, it will be to support a TH-cam channel or charitable foundation.
I think its ok to buy from fast fashion (whether the more expensive ones like Zara and Uniqlo or Shein) as fast fashion pieces tend to be more affordable. I think the key is to consume less instead, buy less number of clothes and only buy those that you truly like
Hi Shin, thanks for your comment! Have you checked out this Planet A report yet? 📺 H&M and Zara: Can fast fashion be eco-friendly? th-cam.com/video/00NIQgQE_d4/w-d-xo.html Let us know what you think in the comments! ✌
Exactly! I have some H&M shirts, Zara tops, forever 21 items too and I’ve had them for years! I think people need to buy things they’ll wear for a long time. It’s sad that people see clothes as disposable
This is why I started sewing again. There is so much beautiful fabric from thrift stores (sheets, quilt covers, pillow cases, men’s shirts etc) and I love spending $50, helping out a charity by buying a heap load of stuff and making one of a kind items that I hope to sell in the next 12 months online. Going thrifting (for me at least) is fun and exciting in the way fast fashion buying is. Plus I get something indie and unique that doesn’t make look like a carbon copy of everyone else. My goal in the next 2 years is to be making all of my own clothes from bras and undies to pajamas and everything in between. And to make things for my house (rugs, curtains, throw pillows etc) so that I never have to buy fabric item brand new again
I'm guilty of buying from Shein a few years ago, before it was as well-known. I needed to build a professional wardrobe quickly & on a shoe-string budget. If I had known the environmental impact I never would have, but from the pieces that didn't fall apart after a few washes, I've managed to save them & continue wearing them.
@@florencebaendes2853 This isn't political, its just that shein is something that was/is very trendy now (moreso than other brands, so they likely just included it to get more reach). Personally speaking, I get ads/sponsored posts from shein in my feeds on social media at least once a day, and I don't even buy clothes online. Also, DW has made videos about fast fashion before that call out other fast fashion brands (they literally have one calling out Zara and HM, check it out), please don't go off about this video being some political stunt lol
I started shopping at Shein a few months ago because of the weight that I gained and it was hard finding inexpensive clothes that allowed me to feel comfortable with my weight gain but … I realized the damaged and haven’t bought anything since.
I think the one good thing I did was I never bought from Shein. People recommended me this a couple of times, however I was skeptical on how long they would last in my wardrobe. Even when I couldn’t afford, I would wear what I have or buy second hand or only buy during sales, but never from Shein.
I guess it can't all be up to consumers, fast fashion is already hurting the 2nd hand clothes market. It's really heartbreaking to see something so time and energy intensive be made disposable.
Did you see those people (oh, they are so not kids) dumping carton*s* full of clothes? I would understand if they were five. Those many? With every phone that they use to buy those clothes having search engine where you can type "fashion emissions" with *every* news channel shouting climate crisis? No. Sorry. Its consumers if getting new clothes is the only way you get *that* feeling.
@@neelroy2918 Fashion industry doesn't have any regulation at all. They are operating mostly legally. Isn't that a huge problem too - that human rights abuses are legal?
@@neelroy2918 I see garbage bags full of clothes at my apartment complex tossed out. Not sure if they all were soiled or still had wear in them. Families here never think about donating their clothes when done using them.
@@Helaw0lf I know. You're lucky if your city can actually use donated clothes. In here situation was so bad when they arranged clothes donation drive they had to travel far in rural regions because everyone had more than enough clothes and nobody would take their old clothes.
shein IS a big company. the only difference is that children make the clothes in sweatshops for like 50 cents a day. also i’m pretty sure you don’t need these clothes, you just want them.
@@save_bandit Yeah, if a company has multiple warehouses and factories all across the globe then I'd definitely consider it a big company. I'm unsure how people can look at something like that and think "Yep, small business".
I remember when Shein brands started to pop up in my social feeds. I knew, from a glance, this company is another fast fashion brand. Thank you for bring this issue up.
Thank god they actually touched on the affordability of the clothes. Not everyone can afford to buy from the competitors especially when shein offer items so cheaply. An element they failed to mention is the accessibility to plus size clothing shein offers. Coming from a developing nation plus sized clothing is not easily available and where it is it is a novelty and therefore expensive. Shein's practices are no doubt bad from a humanitarian and ecological perspective but for many they remain one of the cheaper, more accessible clothing choices and that's going to keep them and others like them in the market for a long time.
Why is there so much pressure on personal responsibility? That only allows companies like Shein to deflect blame onto the individual consumer without making any actual changes.
There is no ethical consumption under capitalism. Who do you think should stop them? Governments who profit from these multi-million dollar businesses? Of course they won' stop as long as they can squeeze money out of people's pockets. So I agree, the individual is not to blame but we are responsible for our choices and If we decide to pump all of our money into the hands of these companies, we are directly enabling them to continue to harm the environment and other people's lives!
What makes me sad is that I've bought like 2 dresses and a pair of socks from SHEIN, and to me the quality was great. The dresses are comfortable and give me the silhouette I like the most, in a style that I don't really see in my city under the price range I can afford. And it makes me sad cuz everybody says SHEIN is garbage, and I can only reflect if everything that I usually buy, living in the southern hemisphere, is actual garbage and the northern hemisphere has that much quality that what I usually have are simply craps to them.
@@esmeraldagreengate4354 and the devaluation of currency. I live in Brazil, and 1 USD is pretty much 5.50 BRL on average, and has been like that for over a year now. When I bought those SHEIN dresses, it was like 1 USD = 3 BRL, and that was still more expensive than ever in my lifetime.
What matters the most at the end of the day is quantity. If you're buying a few dresses and socks there and they ended up being good quality and youcan get good use from them, then good for you! The issue is people who buy boxes and boxes of this stuff just because they can, and because it's cheap, and wear things 10 times max then throw them away or replace it.
don’t worry, i don’t think anyone would blame people who live in poor countries and literally cannot afford good quality clothes or sustainable options for buying fast fashion or claim them to be the problem.
Ever since I read Over Dressed by Elizabeth Cline, the whole impact of the fast fashion industry has been on my mind: labor issues, worker safety, environmental impact. Somewhere on TH-cam is a video about disposing of unwanted garments. If you take them to a thrift shop, they will pitch at least half. Those garments end up in countries like Senegal. The items that they see as unsellable are burnt - and a majority of the products are polyester!! everything is wrong with Shein, H&M, Zara!
I would NEVER shop at Shein. But I see those hauls everywhere and it makes me sad. I don't really agree that a lack of funds is a valid argument. Most people who use it buy way to many clothes that they don't need and never wear or that don't last long or don't even fit. "I don't have money so I exploit those who have even less" doesn't sound right to me... There are a lot of other options to get clothes without spending a lot of money.
I wear a plus size and love how my Shein clothes fit. Sadly Shein is one of the few brands that offer a lot of clothing options in bigger sizes (up to 3XL) so unless more non-fast fashion brands do the same, a lot of consumers will still purchase from brands like Shein that could give them more options.
Size and its actually looking modern, usually plus size is something only grandma would wear.. So this is one of the reasons why I like Shein too. Even if I manage to find plus size outside of Shein, it's usually very expensive, even more then xs
I used to shop from SheIn but as I became more aware of the environmental repercussions I switched to more sustainable options. I was a student then and just like everybody I faced the budget issue. I didn't give up and I turned to the used clothing market like local goodwill and thredUp. It was the best decision I have made for myself because it has made me more aware of my style, the effects of modern day advertising on me and helps me save a lot. I have been able to wear better brands, nicer clothes and best of all, at affordable prices. Buying used clothing is equivalent to wearing something you already have owned for a while.
I have the app. I go in occasionally to look for clothes I like, add to cart and then close the app without buying anything. Then I go to a physical second hand store and try to find something similar at an even less cost than Shein. Let's face it, these Shein products will end up in these stores anyway due to fast fashion.
"I don't have the budget" As a student, I bought sweatpants for over 30€ (I don't even remember the exact sum, I think it was more). After 13 years, the fabric starts to wear out a little. I bought a (Patagonia) t-shirt for 30€, five years in, frequent wearing (lovely t-shirt, I wear it to work and for sporting), no sign of wear Long time ago, I bought technical/outdoor pants on sale for 70€. It seems like a massive price tag back then. In 15 years, I hiked up dozens of mountains, walked hundreds of kilometers and cycled thousands in them. A lot of them in harsh weather - mud, frost, snow. Granted, they have been re-stitched in a few places but I still use them to commute to work. Let me know how long your 5€ garment lasts for and then we can calculate "price per unit of time". I bet that in the end, the cheap is actually expensive. We need to stop this destructive nonsense. It also saps time from people, as you have to spend a lot more time shopping. That's in addition to the workers' suffering and environmental damage. Buy quality, wear it a long time. And if you are a student, go for a hike instead of a beer and you will have the money.
I've bought clothes for 790 lkr (around 3usd) and they're still like brand new 3 years later. I have second hand clothes that I bought for even less that have lasted me for more than 6 years. It really depends on how well you take care of the clothes too. Unfortunately, I am not able to afford something above 1500 lkr and that's with me only buying once or twice a year. I'm not sure if fast fashion works the same here, because nearly everything is around 1000lkr and people don't see that as cheap.
Not everyone has 70 euros available to spend on just a pair of pants… I swear sometimes you privileged people act like you’re sooo righteous and good. Stop with the cap. No. Not everyone can just go out of their way and spend more than 5 euros on a shirt, just because you say so.
good for you. Lucky me I found men's sweatpants for $10 in some noname store at the mall and they lasted me for years. low prices don't automatically mean non-sustainable and poor quality. before fast fashion came into the mass they used to sell quality products for the same price.
I have shopped a couple of times at Shein. In general the quality is quite good for the price in my opinion. Whateve I buy, I usually wear for years and years. I like that Shein has a petite section, because it's very hard to find clothes that me and their clothes fit really well. The thing that bothers me is: how do I know the more expensive companies are not getting their clothes from the same places as the cheap ones, but just asking more money for it? Most clothes are made in China, Bangladesh etc. I doubt the working conditions differ much between companies...
Exactly its so fun! Also, if you end up not liking a shirt or growing out of it you can donate it to a thrift store and some of them will give you a discount on your next purchase it’s great
Absolutely agree. But at least Shein has reasonable prices. Other fast fashion companies like Zara and H&M do the same thing as Shein, the only difference is that their prices are higher. But then you can see what their products are really worth when you take a look at their black friday sales prices: they drop by half, which means they're still making tons of money at discounted prices. So it's not just shein, but all of fast fashion. Also: who noticed the other brands at the bottom of the Fashion transparency index? D&G and Max Mara, more "high end" brands, are also there. This is not to say that I'm defending Shein, my point is: what Shein does is not ok, but at least they keep their prices down for everyone to purchase, while more expensive brands are also not ok but their prices are sky high. Still, I very rarely hear of journalism talking about how brands like D&G or Max Mara are a problem.
Ah yes "Others are bad too". SHEIN is just up and coming and that is why they were picked. You can actually do research and find out which brands are on top. There are cheap brands that don't exploit or at least try to avoid that. As a kid I used to not want to wear "Zeeman" stuff because that was for poor people and kids might pick on you. Now, people are unashamed by cheap stuff from Primark. But what Primark put into making it "fast fashion" and needs new designs multiple times a year, Zeeman does not. They have more time/money to check on the places the get the same shirt from forever. So I guess now I would not be ashamed. I just have money to buy clothes that are a bit cuter and similar in durability. Company is far from perfect, but at least they were trying. I will forever love their idea of a 30 euro weddingdress.
I’m gonna make a throwback…. My mom was raised in Czechoslovakia. Back then when someone wanted jeans or something from West, you needed to go to special store called Tuzex. For my moms 15th birthday, she got an Lewis jeans that cost like 240€ back then… and she told me that they were undestructable… now she is sometimes looking for jeans at around 30-40€ price point and she is mad when they wear out at around year after buying … The thing I’m trying to say here is easy… Buy quality over quantity and when you’re gonna feel bored with that, sell it second hand.
I used to shop at shein too, it’s cheap and fast delivery. That was until I stumble upon a design on a t shirt that is actually by an instagram artist I admire. I realize shein has been stealing a lot of art!!! I work as a graphic designer so I understand how irresponsible it is. I immediately stopped shopping there. I tell myself “Remember to think of what you stand for.”
I teach fashion design, I am trying to educate students about this problem but is difficult to compete with what Shein offers. The industry needs to be regulated.
I’m seventeen and in NYC, most of my peers- including myself- are openly against Shien. I and other tend to buy clothes at vintage/second-hand clothes stores or buy from individuals on platforms like Depop. However I have received Shien products as gifts from older relatives, which I found surprising. Overall this might just be my specific bubble of my generation. I am not sure about my generation overall and I can’t speak for all of them, but the interviewed girls in this video don’t speak for all of us either.
When it comes to clothes I prefer quirky patterns/designs rather than brands, and I typically can only find those on sites like Shein. Or even thrift stores. Anywhere but mainstream stores where everything is bland or overpriced. I never even knew what fast fashion was, I just liked the styles I saw on there. I still wear stuff from there years later too. If you take care of it it'll last
As long as you are aware of trying to not overconsume and only buy what you need, its ok. The burden shouldnt be bared by the consumers only (except shein influencer hauls).
I have heard of SHEIN and have seen their advertisements on Facebook. I have yet to shop there. I have steered away from buying clothes seasonally. I’ve taken a good look at my closet and decided I have more than enough. But I not perfect and have given in to the temptation of Costco.
I took up minimalism back in 2013. It really can open your eyes to the concept of legit consumerism. I've never bought from this company, it's pretty rare that I purchase even a new product when it comes to clothes (except underwear/socks/shoes), I primarily shop from Goodwill.
Ive shopped on shein and found their quality to be acceptable half of the time. Items with thousands of reviews are a better bet than ones without. Most of the clothing I own already come from sweatshops, so the ethical difference isnt huge. I went to shein for fun pieces every once in a while, but I have a full closet now filled with pieces that I love and want to keep. Thrifting is fun, but going to a nice thrift shop takes over an hour one way.
when you’re lower class even lower middle class, shein is mostly what you can afford to buy in mass, alongside thrift stores. H&M, Zara, and other fast fashion stores have gotten pretty pricey
I’m very proud to say that I’ve never, ever bought clothes on shein. I have friends who told be to buy from them but I didn’t give in to the peer pressure.
@@ori4627 i don’t unless of course it’s gifted. Most of my cloths are from local business or I custom make them with a seamstress. If ever I do receive clothes from H & M, etc I make sure that it would last me a long time
7:07 I'm literally wearing a €2 hoodie and €4 trousers that I thrifted. A low budget is absolutely not a valid excuse to buy planet-killing worker-abusing design-stealing low-quality rubbish that presents itself as clothing. Smh
When I first discovered Shein. I became so excited because I was in a darker place in my life and tended to treat it with retail therapy. But I didn’t have any money, so I would always go for cheaper options. But even then I would consider what I was buying. Even if you can’t afford ethical and environmentally conscious. You can always buy products that you will use for a long time, donate your old clothes (even if it is in poor condition you can donate the materials), have a clothes swap buddy, or buy vintage for cheaper.
Honestly this is a more viable option for most. A lot of the comments on here contain an all or nothing mentality which most people won't be able to uphold. Your comment reminds me of the economic concept of "utils". It's a theory that explains that even if a product is more expensive but you genuinely like it and can see yourself using it often, you'll get more use out of it than buying a cheaper product. Though SHEIN is cheap, if you're buying products that you really like, you're less likely to keep coming back for more since your needs are met with the original product of your choice. Ergo, less waste
I do find it interesting how the generation and group of people most likely to be vocal 'supporters of the environment' or whatever are also most likely to partake in fast fashion; one of the most significant contributing factors of needless waste in the environment, and ironically happens to be one of the things that consumers can make the most impact on at the individual choice level.
i think its because of how easily young people are influenced by things they see online, other reasons are that young people specifically young adults usually struggle with money the most so if theres a company that has good looking cheap clothes it makes sense that theyve become so popular. also trends are most popular from when youre a teenager to a young adult
Let’s blame young people for their hypocrisy and not take responsibility as experienced adults. Let’s continue to be part of all the problems. That’s productive.
These kids live in a world dictated from the phone outward. Reality is just a concept to them, they have no connection to what has built the world to this moment and how integrated they are into a system so destructive.
its a large group of people. i highly doubt they are all the same. just like your generation has environmental supporters and extreme consumerism within one group
I’m 24 and I used to work at Forever 21 when I was 18/19 and loved the clothes. Honestly some pieces held up over the years. I know for a fact if Shein was a thing back then that I would’ve been all over it. However, over the years I’ve just… stopped with fast fashion. I don’t buy as many clothes anymore. I’ve sold most of my clothes through 3rd party reselling apps. Everything in my closet right now is something that I genuinely like. Plus, they’re sustainable. Instead of buying 10 shirts at once, now I can buy 2-3 that will last me a long time and the material is just so much better. It’s not *really* that expensive when compared to how much you’re spending on fast fashion. I think it’s doable. Maybe not for everyone, but I believe most of the people making these haul videos can definitely afford to buy sustainable clothing lmao it’s yucky that they’re promoting such a horrid action and brand
If anyone actually cared this would be banned from the App Store and they’d be buying secondhand clothes. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with buying secondhand or just not buying anything at all
Not true I actually Can’t afford more than shein and the most I’ve spent at once is $30 and I could barely afford that. But I got a lot which I needed with that money compared to one item I could get for that price at ANOTHER fast fashion place never mind a sustainable retailer.
@@eliz3225 exactly, you’re not who I’m talking about. If you could barely afford $30 worth of stuff from them in one purchase that website is meant for you. It’s the people who spend $500 in one purchase on shein who can obviously afford to shop sustainable but choose not to. Fast fashion is meant for people who can’t afford sustainable clothing only. Therefore, it’s okay if you shop there 😊
I bought their stuff once because it was the only place I could find a very specific item I was looking for. I added a few other items in just because it was so cheap. One of them ended up being one of my favourite tops I wear all the time, but other than that I don't wear the rest as much and even the specific item I bought it for wasn't what I was looking for ultimately. It's too bad, and seeing reports like this make me determined to never buy from there again.
And *THANK YOU* to this channel for dubbing instead of subtitling! It's annoying when videos are almost entirely listenable, but they choose to subtitle. And *WAAAAAY MORE IMPORTANTLY*, dubbing = accessibility. Subtitling is inaccessible to visually impaired people, people who cannot read the language in which the subtitles are written (yes, it's possible to be nearly fluent in a language while being illiterate in said language), or experience sensory overload as a result of subtitles.
I think the concept of sustainability being too expensive when it comes to clothing is absolutely ridiculous. The most sustainable thing you can do is NOT BUY
@@justpeachy6450 ikr XD I don't do fast fashion or buy too much stuff but I'm from India. I have second hand clothes from family members and my own clothes are given to our house help etc because there is such a big divide in rich and poor. I still need basic clothing, it's still expensive for me to buy even one pair of jeans. They do run out after years. NOT BUY works for extra stuff bought for trends, not for basics. Eg. A sustainable t-shirt costs 2000 and a basic brand costs 600, fast fashion costs 250 something. I cannot afford that 2000. I don't remember the exact statement but rich people can buy better stuff which lasts longer. Oh well....
@@justpeachy6450 The key is to own less clothing, because how many do you need, really? Own staple pieces that you can mix and match into a lot of different looks. All my clothes are from H&M, Zara, and other fast fashion brands, but so far they've lasted 5+ years. It's all I can afford, so I try to make them last as long as possible in the best condition possible. I wish thrifting was an option for me, but it's simply not because it's not prevalent where I live.
@@justpeachy6450 people buy extra clothes unnecessarily nowadays, is what im saying. college kids be saying they cant afford expensive clothes and then go shopping every month. well yeah thats why you're probably broke???
I buy my clothes second hand on-line. I wonder about the impact of shopping this way. Every minute spent searching on line doesn't make my electricity bill go up noticeably but it must cost something somewhere. The packaging materials and postal services have got to be less than buying something new but it's certainly not zero. If every neighbourhood has a swap shop where people could drop off what they didn't want and pick up what they did want! Crafters could dismantle the items that are too worn and save and sort the buttons. If this were organized by a jobs programme instead of a profit system it would be worth doing. As more and more jobs get automated there's still lots of work that needs doing that people don't make a profit from without exploiting people, and work that needs doing that doesn't get done. Wouldn't it be great to pull invasive lake weeds by hand instead of using herbicides? Cheerful volunteers do it sometimes and make a party of it but if a UBI programme is to get off the ground maybe it should be built on a 100 hours a month job programme that gets things done that aren't profitable but worth doing.
I thought about it, ordering from Shein, but it seemed pretty sketchy so I decided not to. Instead of just throwing something away, donate your clothes, either send it to thred up or goodwill so someone else can use it!
I buy all my kid's clothes from Shein because they grow so fast and it seems crazy buying a dress for €10 rather than €1 when they only wear it one season and then have grown out of it. Then I always donate it to goodwill and I feel that I haven't wasted any money when I give it away for free.
It seems like a solid option for families on a budget with children that grow out of clothes quickly. Outside of that scenario, I don’t see why anyone would buy low quality clothes. Then again, companies like Burberry incinerate older clothes instead of liquidating them.
Agree, the quality is not worse than many other brands. I buy all my kid's clothes from Shein because they grow so fast and it seems crazy buying a dress for €10 rather than €1 when they only wear it one season and then have grown out of it. Then I always donate it to goodwill and I feel that I haven't wasted any money when I give it away for free.
Agreed, or maybe maternity or losing or gaining a bunch of weight quickly? Mostly I think social media has made fashion cycles have the lifespan of mayflies and people cannot afford to shop elsewhere even if they want to in order to not add to the suffering of people employed in the sweatshops used by fast fashion brands, the environmental issues associated with fast fashion, smaller creators designs being stolen by fast fashion brands, etc. Many people can afford to shop elsewhere but just don't want to pay more for the same thing. Many bigger brands do make their products in China in similar ways with cheap materials and just charge more (even some well-known brands that used to be known for quality). Most fast fashion falls apart so quickly that it is not even worth the decreased price tag though tbh. There are so many issues with fast fashion and consumerism. The way we are marketed to based on creating an insecurity. The way some advertisers go beyond bodypositivity or self care being important and straight into you deserve everything right tnow for nothing all the time... telling us all that it is somehow empowering to behave like entitled spoiled brats. It's pure insanity. :(
@@gohardorgohome6693 Thrift stores are quite uncommon in some places (the US has lots of them, but not every country does). Where I live, which is a more rural area, there is only a small handful of thrift stores and most of them are really small and don't sell any children's or men's clothing and even the women's clothing is only in a style which is not really fashionable for people in the twenties. For children, there are flea markets, but only twice a year and even those aren't so big that you can guarantee to find a jacket or a pair of shoes that fits, nor are there enough clothes to buy all your shirts and pants there. And if you're a man, there is basically no option to buy clothes at thrift stores if you don't want to pay 20$ or so on driving to the shop. The only option are online thrift stores.
People buy way too much in general. I know so many people who say: I can't afford brands, but have 20 shirts and 40 skirts at home. No one wears everything in the closet. Save some money up for sustainable clothes or go thrifting. The majority of people have no excuse for buying from shein. There's are people who live in small towns and it harder but the most people have the chance to make better choices.
@Vicar Amelia I mean I'd rather have an iPhone which lasts me 4 years perfectly fine, than an Android which I need to buy every year as it is poor quality and goes bad way too quick.
things are also designed to last a very short amount of time! So you can spend MORE MONEY and throw away the old stuff. But dont worry there is still hope! I a a 13 year old and i see shein for what it really is!
Let me just propose a conspiracy theory: SHEIN is not a clothing company, but a fast dataset gathering and training for AI. The thing is, you can only so far in reducing costs since it is a clothing industry and any investor will know this is not a wise choise to jump onboard. So my theory is SHEIN's most valuable asset is not even its brand and social influence but the shear quantity of data it gathered from the customers and letting them training the AI to predict human behavior. I'll bet the fashion industry is already planning to get hold of this, or maybe it's them that is sponsoring this company in the shadow to begin with
I am personally buy a lot in Shein because of the Plus size category! In my country there are only a few and expensive and old fashioned stores for that and it feels like you came to buy for your grandmother! In Shein you have all you want , you feel sexy and trendy and it’s cheap. If you start to diet and loose weight, you don’t mind about new clothes again in Shein!’
My 14 year old daughter once made a Shein purchase. I didn't know at the time about this company. Just that all the kids buy from there. I showed her once a similar vlog exposing their business model and she almost burst into tears. That will have been her last ever Shein purchase I'm happy to say.
@@getstarted5080 your comment is based on your simplistic and incorrect assumption that all teenagers are buying lots of their clothes in H&M. Aggressive comments like yours are not helping in this discussion about positive changes being made in consumer choices.
@@Freida98 Mam, I'm sorry you feel that is aggressive and I am simply trying to reason with you. I feel that you owe your daughter the complete truth on the nature of H&M (and Ikea as well) on their culpability in this global debate about climate change. Please note that in this video there is a segment that mention that the factory contracted to make cloth for Shein don't start until they received order. To me that sounds like a more environmentally conscientious solution. Clearly AI and advanced algorithm helps with this made to order process.
I’m guilty of previously having shopped at shein despite having the means to use my money in better things. I would reason to myself that it’s cheaper, and I really needed the cute clothes to fit in. But you know what I realized? That the clothes I enjoy and actually wear a lot are the ones that I bought for a price that can account for the time and effort put into it. Being environmentally friendly doesn’t really change the price tag from my favourite pieces.
I don't come from a well off family that's why when i discovered Shein i was in joy, because the clothes were so cheap and they all looked nice or in style. But after seeing this, i won't ever buy a single thing from them. I'd rather go to thrift stores if i wanted cheap stuff.
@@sentinonloso3859 buy from online thrift stores/resellers! imo it's way better than contributing to fast fashion companies :) plus there's always lots of different brands and options for cheap. i personally use poshmark and it's worked great
to those saying they don't have enough money to buy expensive clothes, go to a goddamn thrift store. literally you live in berlin, were you have access to do many thrift stores where you can buy things even cheaper and better quality than on shein
Not sure how it is in Berlin, but in other big cities, the second hand stores that sell anything the least bit cool are expensive, the more affordable ones will have last year's fast fashion brands, and the cheapest ones have the stuff the former 2 wouldn't take. It's not an easy issue to fix but it is definitely a problem where consumers play a large part in it. So long as more and more young people think they have to keep up with the latest trends and constantly buying new stuff and throwing last year's out, this will keep going on. Unless the governments can intervene in some way since the fashion industry contributes a lot to climate change and environmental destruction.
Have you heard of SHEIN, or have you shopped there yourself?
neither nor
Ja, von Simplicissimus
I have herd of SHEIN, but never shopped there. I'm afraid if i buy something there, it wont look like the picture.
I've been bombarded with Shein ads, but I've never been interested enough to actually visit the store. Now I know I never will. But I'm 2x as old as the TikTok target group.
Never heard of it before today.
I'm guilty of being a SHEIN consumer. I started a few years back when they were not well known. I was shocked by the low prices and fast delivery. I loved it, absolutely loved the possibility to have a new outfit every week. In the last 1 month I stumbled upon a few youtube documentaries on fast fashion and SHEIN in particular. After the first documentary I withdraw all the money off my SHEIN wallet and deleted the app. Honestly... it's a bit addicting. I used to scroll the new clothes before going to bed. Kinda miss that but I'm okay with putting an end to it.
Proud of you for changing your behavior instead of tuning out reality!
Thank you for sharing, so important to talk about this
I used to shop when theyre not that big yet. Then I stopped.
I can totally understand that! Congrats on pulling back, good luck on staying off it too. I have a similar habit on ebay and I avoid the same fast fashion pitfalls by fixing my filter to second hand. Now it's like browsing a thrift store in bed. Xx you might also look at youtube about "shop your closet" which I also get the shopping kick out of.
Same i totally understand the addiction of scrolling thru the app. I don't buy much from there but looking at their stuff is so damn addictive.
I absolutely agree to the conclusions drawn here: With every purchase we make a decision that impacts on nature and society. I'd rather buy less clothes, but of good quality so that I can wear them for years.
ikr. I dont get how people cant wear shoes or any clothing more than once. Or maybe they wish to be like the celebrities who they follow as they are shows to have many choices
@@In.Another.Universe I was thinking about that as well and I wonder why celebrities like Katy Perry advertise wearing Shein. They should considerate their impact on their fans more. Personally, those people doing advertisement for Shein lose their credibility.
Sadly higher end brands have been adopting these techniques. (ie. the material literally falls apart within 6 months, usually much sooner) this trend has also spilled over into consumer electronics and appliances . Brands such as Whirlpool, and Kenmore are now designed with a service life expectancy of 3-5 years (for like a $2000 refrigerator and they are refusing to sell parts even with "right to repair " laws having been passed)
@@htopherollem649 which higher end brands? You make quite a generalization from which one could conclude that Shein isn't that bad.... I have many clothes from cheaper as well as more expensive brands and most of them have lasted me for years
@@htopherollem649 Was going to say the same. Maybe there are some really pricey brands of very high quality but there's a lot between very cheap fast fashion to there and much of that is also made in the same sort of way and also doesn't last long, it's just more about the brand being considered more prestigious or being better looking than the cheapest fast fashion.
Zara, H&M and Uniqlo are considered fast fashion, yet here in my country it’s still considered to be quite expensive. Although definitely not a high-end product, it’s mid to upper level for sure.
Right? Any time someone includes UNIQLO or Zara I'm like 👀
H&M not so much. But Zara in India and Zara in Canada are so different lol. Uts so much more expensive in India
This is my issue. I'm from the UK where places like Zara and Uniqlo are likely cheaper than other countries but as a student I still can't really afford it. I avoid super fast fashion from places like SHEIN but unfortunately it's just often not feasible to completely avoid fast fashion brands when on a budget.
Relatable
In India, zara is somewhat costlier and not everybody goes there to buy stuff on a regular basis
True here too
As a designer (of mostly crochet tops and sweaters) it pains me to see that SHEIN steals the designs of other small shops/creators like myself. So far I haven't been hit but many of my friends have. We work so hard on these designs, only to have them get stolen and sold for $7.
I think that's piracy at it's finest.
That’s terrible :(
That's basically IP theft
@@robboss1663 o really what's the difference then?
@@robboss1663 piracy and theft are the same, they are synonymous
For me, the question is: how can we help young people to accept themselves and be resistant to this toxic consumerist manipulation?
thats so true!!! The question is not how much i have to spend on each stuff - how many do I really need? And lets be honest, nobody needs more than for ex. 5 pullovers...
I think parenting can play a small part. Even if it's just a little.
Every day at work I see little kids get whatever they want on impulse.
Or are begged to
I remember my mom used to talk me through it.
Do I need it? How long will I use it. Will there be something else I like better?
When when I disagreed, I still thought about those questions for hours after.
And now I use that checklist today with some extra steps.
@@crystalthunderheart8895 Parenting would actually be the BIGGEST part.
I agree but I think it’s also not just young people but the whole society has become so consumption focused, and we need to change that
Yup
“We are students…low on funds” yet I can see a bag strap with the LV monogram all over it
Let’s face it, majority of people who are buying insane amounts of clothing from any fast fashion brand is doing it to keep up with the trends
When I stopped following trends and found my own personal style that suits me, I found it much much easier to resist buying new clothes every other week. Not only does this save my wallet and the planet, I found yourself much happier with the clothes I have and didn’t have the “I have nothing to wear” feeling anymore
This is how you do it! 👏😃💯
wow! you’re so special
Same here
I got a big bag used clothing for only 150dkk
@@moonluart1583 Wow! You're not.
i agree! everything was much better once I was able to embrace myself and my own taste and i want to spread more of the messge that this is possible and spending large sums of money for something 'trendy' that dies out in a matter of months is not worth it
The issue is honestly that we overconsume… i know damn well the girl that said „why would i pay more when i can have it for less“ buys clothes regularly every month which SHOULDNT be the norm. You dont need 10000pieces of clothing. We need to get back to the mindset where less is more.
This! In the past year I have only bought 2 new items of clothing. A shirt to replace an old one that was too worn to wear anymore, and a winter coat that I'm hoping will last me for many years. I really don't get why people need to be constantly buying new clothes they're probably only going to wear a handful of times (if at all).
absolutely
@The Cozy Glow no, thinking in terms of less is important. People have no idea what they actually need, and that’s going to hamper sustainable decision making.
100%
You don't need a massive wardrobe!
What is even worse is chasing after trendy clothes that you either do not fit you or you just wear it once and throw it away!
Have you seen the quality of these polyester clothes? They start peeling after a few wears.
Fast fashion is like yogurt, it expires LOL
Also remember, clothes from well known fashion brands and that are more expensive not necessarily means good quality or ethically made too. Just stop over consuming clothes and be mindful with what we wear. Don’t follow fashion trends, they just want you to spend!
exactly! Many "design" brands are using the same labor and materials while charging 10 times what other brands would simply for stamping their logo on it. I've held in my hands a Gucci hoodie that was literally just a regular hoodie but cost 1000$ because it had "Gucci" sown on the chest.
100%
Thank you, like ZARA, here in my country zara is like middle to upper class, is very expensive yet the material are the same quality as forever21 and is 3x more expensive yet look at the tags they are made in bamgkadesh
Exactly! I have some clothes to shein and they are similar to any affordable pieces you'd get on stores. I wear everything I got.
Honestly if your taste is that expensive why would you buy a 5$ shirt from them and then complain, did you expect real silk or something?😂
Why don't we criticize the real issue? Overconsumption and people not donating their old clothes
Yesss
I completely agree. Btw Zara and other more expensive clothing stores are still fast fashion too! even though they’re more expensive. Mid/higher end prices doesn’t equal good quality in the U.S ):
i purchase from both and i was happier surprise with shien quality !
Do y’all except us all to buy expensive clothes?, I spend 20€ in a sweater or hoodie, 5 or 10€ maximum on a t-shirt, and 20-30€ on jeans
YES! it's very important to say this. I know someone who told me that shopping at shein is bad, yet they buy clothes from forever 21, h&m, etc.. as the top comment said, the only non fast fashion is thrifting!
Flow :0 / There are plenty of alternatives to fast fashion that doesn’t involve thrifting.
@Flow :0 majority of labeled thrift stores are just surplus stores from fast fashion companies smh
Not to mention how Shein routinely steals designs and intellectual property from small designers (particularly minority designers) and outsells them before the designers can even do anything about it
intellectual property doesnt apply to clothing in most countries and I seriously doubt shein has it out for specifically minority designers. keep your american identity politics out of this
@@verreal protected or not, if one is morally right, they wouldn't purchase stuff like that.
Love it how you have to tell that the designers are minorities, because if they were stealing from white people then nobody would bat an eye and some people would even encourage it
@Randomnamegeneratir eggsactly 🥚
@@SP-ft4ir sounds like that little sentence got you riled up
This makes me so angry because the ones who are usually used as scapegoats when it comes to condemning fast fashion are the people who really have no choice. Not everybody has the means and privilege to afford sustainable clothing.
And then there's people doing massive Shein hauls for hundreds or even thousands of bucks, meaning they clearly have the funds to make better, more ethical and sustainable choices but they simply choose not to because doing a massive haul of the latest trends is good content.
There are very few people that "need" to shop at Shein and other fast fashion stores. I get my clothing almost exclusively through thrift shops and clothing swaps, you can find stuff just as cheap.
There might be places where this isn't the case, for instance, rural areas where tracking down a physical thrift shop or organizing a clothing swap can be difficult. But the majority of people who buy fast fashion are doing it out of convenience, not necessity.
@@oliviastratton2169 In Brazil its rare when a thrift shop has good clothes, and it's not everyone here that have the conditions to buy good quality clothes, so it's not fair to blame everyone that shops in Shein
@@liliejakrinski2992 That's a fair point. I was mainly thinking of the people living in wealthy countries, like those depicted in the video.
@@oliviastratton2169 Thank you, i live in a place where there aren't really any thrift shops plus good quality clothes are only sold in malls where it's really expensive especially in my currency. I honestly have no choice but to buy in fast fashion stores just to get some clothes
@B Luga Right. Because before capitalism, no one ever had poor working conditions. /s
Also, isn't this a Chinese company? Hardly a bastion of free enterprise or secure property rights.
As a girl in highschool (I live in the Netherlands) who thrifts all of her clothes (everything except for of course underwear and swimwear), I really hate shein. It is not only bad for the environment, but people also don’t KNOW that it is bad. I see more and more clothes from shein in thrift shops and people just aren’t aware enough of the downsides of fast fashion.
Same here I Thrift everything!
Especially by now there's even online second-hand stores (unfortunately, I don't have many physical thrift stores nearby where I can find clothes that fit me), so it's possible to still have the selection and convenience as well as often lower prices than even shein.
你可以买Shein 的便宜衣服，然后把节省下来的钱，捐助给需要帮助的人，而不是因为便宜买更多衣服
@@ameliad.6042 她没这个意思。再说了大商场卖的东西质量能好吗？别在那“需要帮助的人”来做理由了，太常用了没头脑
i live in the netherlands as well! do you have any thrift shop recommendations
I’m so glad fast fashion brands like shein were banned in India recently, it’s worth the sacrifice since it will hopefully allow local creators to blossom and lower the demand immensely on the unethical factories that make these clothes
India has their more than fair share of unethical practices. It's just that world's focus is kn China right now. If you want to be sure, next time you employ anyone for any handiwork from local, non corporate, company, ask them about health insurance.
@@neelroy2918 wait what? I didn’t say unethical practices don’t exist in India, they obviously do. I just pointed out that banning fast fashion was a good move
These all *promote* fast fashion I.e. throw quick buy new. Fast fashion is *not* banned in India. Some apps are.
Reasons for that can be completely different: nationalism, security among many.
@@neelroy2918 but aren’t the apps and outlets how most fast fashion was sold anyway? (Unless you count the stuff developed nations dump here) the brand factory outlet in my city near a mall had to close down because they could no longer order Chinese cheap clothing, neither can any of my friends now get them anywhere here, something we felt pretty bad for initially but later were glad about
To the kids saying they don't have money to buy anything more expensive: just don't. Don't buy it. You don't really need it and it's not worth it. If you want a cheap winter jacket etc, buy second hand, there are mountains of discarded clothes waiting to be recycled or burned
Also, if you buy less and less often, you'll have more to spend on something more expensive and qualitative. =)
Yes, we can all become paupers scrounging for scraps while the rich suck down everything.
Seriously why they can't think this way.
@@filonin2 I sure felt like a pauper when I wore a vintage Yves Saint Laurent overcoat through my teens when my aunt found it in a thift shop. And it sure does feel "poor" to wear handmade custom shoes I had made for me instead of buying 6 cheap pairs. Quality over quantity, not that luxury is really as valuable as the living wages and happiness of other people
So, I’m going to give you another point of view. I’m a buyer from Shein, but I bought 5 peace’s of clothe because my income is small. In my country Shein has small prices but not that small, is like any popular store and most of second hand shops here, just a little bit more cheap. Other point that is favorable to buy in Shein in my country is that up till now all their clothes are high quality than the ones I can find in popular stores for the same price.
An idea, maybe instead of shaming people for buying fast fashion, we instead teach them how to identify quality clothing and how to repair their own clothes instead of tossing them just because a seam bursts.
Yea, sewing needs to become normalized again. I’m hoping to learn basic repairs soon so I can throw less clothes out.
That’s not the problem.
The problem is that wearing last year’s jeans is seen as shameful.
And of course, always, PRICES. Why pay more if you can pay less?
Or just don't buy so much clothes, is that so hard? Do you really need to have that much clothes?
@@SaveMoneySavethePlanet Well, part of the problem is that a lot of fast fashion is made in a way that makes it really hard to repair or - heaven forbid - alter.
@@rolfs2165 yea absolutely. That’s why it’s nice to see how many people are getting away from fast fashion in general.
I think we need to teach people to be appreciative of what they already have. No need to constantly buy new clothes every season. And if you feel the need to constantly buy new clothes then at least donate your old clothes or even put them in trash bags, write “free clothes” on them and put them on the side of the road. I guarantee you they’ll be gone within an hour or two. That goes for anything else that still works perfectly. Especially electronics that you just don’t want or need anymore.
...what an AMAZING idea! Bravo! helene :)
Lies again? Driver Chauffeur Debit Card
5:08 so not only is SHEIN a shady company, so are designers like Dolce & Gabbana and DKNY?! Just goes to show expensive doesn't mean good either.
Right! But the poor get blamed and shamed again.
Tbh I would like to see where other brands like Louis Vuitton, Balenciaga and even savage x Fenty are... Spoiler, very down on the list I feel like
At this point tbh it's just better to buy second hand in charity shops if possible and try to hold on our pieces we have already, and if needed to just repair them
Also as a fashion designers myself who studied for years fashion and brands, I will tell you what was told to me: "paying a lot is often paying for a symbol, not for sustainability". Keep in mind that most stuff you see on red carpets and catwalks is made by hand to fit an artist/model/actress etc but when it comes to prêt a porter in high end fashion brands is mostly made in foreign countries. The only way to buy sustainabily is to look for certified B Corp brands or from local taylors or even second hand as I stated before, or if you have a friend... closet swapping is a good solution
We already know D&G and DKNY is trash. That is nothing new.
We need to stop treating climate change like it's an individual problem. It's the corporations we need to be talking to, not trying to dish out responsibility to poor/broke people. Katy Perry and the like have no excuse, but MOST people cannot afford to spend $80 on one piece of sustainable clothing.
Edit: U can argue until u turn blue, but the fact is 100 energy companies are responsible for 71% of **ALL** emissions.
This needs to be up voted like a million times so true 👍
Good point. We barely produce ~30 percent of the world's greenhouse gases while the big corporations produce the rest. While action should be taken to lessen climate change on our part, focusing and shifting all the responsibility to us while ignoring who contributes the most is a lie perpetuated by capitalism.
You can't regulate a polluting corporation in China or US or whatever, they lobby and has huge resources; but you can as an individual chose not to buy clothes from them.
No one is saying that in order to stop buying clothes in this kind of stores, the only solution is buying designer. Absolutely no.
There are other options like thrifting stores which have the same/lower prices than Shein. So there are no excuses to continue buying in this kind of stores.
Climate change is an individual problem though. Corporations will produce whatever is in demand and whatever the laws we decide through voting in democratic elections allow them to. Excessive consumerism is the problem but nobody wants to hear that.
As I have gotten older, I highly value the quality of a well made piece of clothing. I've been buying a LOT of made in the US clothing. I want the opposite of fast fashion. I want to buy clothes that maybe can last me the rest of my life.
And by doing that you also know that the people who manufacture those clothing are getting decent wages and can have a decent life.
@@davidlguerr exactly. I like supporting local, and if I can’t, I’m at least going to buy the best made longest lasting thing I can find. Especially with things like jackets, sweaters, button ups, hats, etc. I’d rather buy one expensive jacket I’ll keep forever vs 5 cheap ones that I throw away or donate after a couple of years.
@@todddammit4628 But beware that expensive does not always means better.
@@davidlguerr Very true. I watch a lot of reviews now before I buy clothes.
@@davidlguerr expensive doesn't even mean that its done ethnically or workers are getting decent wages. lots of verification is needed frankly.
Everyone around me buys Shein. Now, I do understand the fact that why go spend more when you can spend less. And it is true that not everybody can afford better brands and that almost all brands work like this nowadays. Honestly the reason I never gave in to Shein or other stuff is because they also steal artists work. I mostly thrift my clothes, or don't buy at all. If I have to, I stay in between my budget by trying to polluting less. My advices especially to young people are:
- don't buy what you don't really need
- don't buy what you don't really like
- buy what lasts
- buy versatile, basic essentials clothing to mix and match
- only splurge once in a while and try to make it a good sustainable one
- swap clothes w friends, relatives etc or thrift them
- ignore the urge to mass buy you don't need that many clothes
Good advice 🙌 I love clothes swaps with friends
It's just hyper-consumerism targeting a age demographic that is known to indulge in it. Alot of these issues come from not knowing when to stop because the phenomenon of the digital age.
Clothes swap is highly advised, a friend gifted me her old long skirt (to use as a poncho) when I gave her my jacket. I ended up enjoying wearing that skirt with shorts under around the house.
Sadly, it is harder now that I don't have many friends near by plus pandemic :(
ok but long lasting clothes are expensive
I knew a pair of twelve yr old girls who were making a advertisement for Shein,in the classroom. 💀💀(they didn't get paid to do it or anything.)
The problem wasn't your average person who buy clothes, it's the people who hauls because the price is so cheap and ended up no even wearing them
Exactly. I can't afford nice clothes so I buy some things on Shein. I have a few pairs of pants, a few sweaters, and that's it. I'm wearing my other clothes for 10 years ago. If I had the money, sure I'd buy about 10 quality pieces and a few shoes, and that would be it. I'm poor, and that's just the reality for some of us. The problem is people who can afford better clothes but buy massive amounts on Shein, then make a youtube video, thus making their money back or more. It's not Shein's fault, nor any other fast fashion retailer. It's typical human greed.
That's not true.
I'm sorry. I know it's inconvenient to hear, but when you buy from a business that uses unethical labor and manufactures poor quality garments that will wear out and become landfill in a very short period of time, you are supporting that business model and you ARE contributing to the problem.
Textiles are EXTREMELY resource intensive to produce. The fabric, the dye, all the transportation involved. It uses a lot of water and produces A LOT of carbon. And that's before it even gets turned into clothes!
Shein has 600,000 styles on its site. That's millions of garments. Think of all the carbon spent shipping all those things from China to average people, who're buying an average amount of clothes, who feel absolved because it's not "a haul".
I'm not trying to make you feel guilty because we've all bought fast fashion before, but recognise that your choices have an impact and that you DO have power as a single consumer :)
@@Voyher_"I'm not trying to make you feel guilty"
Yes you are lmao
@@taebby78 That's a very good point. I have way too much clothes and I want to try and downsize to just a few pieces of clothing, but I don't know anyone, besides Goodwill, who'd want them at the moment.
the problem is everyone who buys their clothes at shein. if you want cheap clothes you can thrift and they will arguably still be a better quality than what u can get from shein. on top of that u can upscale, tailor, and fix the clothes u find if they arent perfect to you. buying more expensive and higher quality clothes less often is also more sustainable than shein and helps fight the crazy consumerism that is running the fashion industry today
Well, they are not that much different from big fashion brands. But there is one big difference: you pay cheap. With big fashion brands you pay a premium price, and they have the very same conditions and wages for workers.
And that sir, increases volume which increase emissions. To put it in perspective, entire USA is 15% of global emissions. And fashion, yes freaking fashion, that's clothes we wear so protect us from elements is 8-10%.
David, finally someone with brain.
Yeah and it's the same quality ! My H&M shirts get bigger because the material acts like you tried to tear them apart so they are soooo fragile and badly sewn and they get holes and my DCMJ jeans are not the same quality at all as my mom's jeans who could last decades (too bad it's not my size :( )
@@gargoyle4807 It depends on how you handle them too. If you wash them by hand, and not dry them using machine, they would last much longer. If they bigger you can't do much but if they get torned you can fix them. If you have small holes you can rafoo
afu them instead of throwing them out (search youtube for "How to do Rafoo on Clothes with Machine"). This is being used in developing countries. You can put the pressure on brands to make them durable but you can also do these things meanwhile.
@@neelroy2918 (I don't throw them away, I sew them or wear them differently like my torned crop top with a vest) I will watch the techniques you are talking about
Need more content like that. We europeans are not aware of the consequences that our acts have on other countries. For every item we buy, a person has put energy on it. Are we helping this person have a good life as we want it for ourselves?
@@paranoah1925 If clothes that cost X times more also lasted X + 1 times longer i would be interested, but the cost doesn't equal how long it lasts. It is close enough to the same that just buying what i need within my small budget and using it up means i use very close to the same amount of fabric.
Well I think that’s not about the lack of content or knowledge, because even since I was a little girl I’ve heard things like “you can wear this t-shirt because of little Asian hands that made it”, it’s rather a common knowledge. And It’s not hard to look at your tags and see “made in China/Bangladesh/Sri Lanka/Indonesia” etc. I think most of Europeans know that in the back of their heads, but it’s just more comfortable to look away from the truth and get rid of guilty conscience. It’s really not hard to get these information. They just choose not to get them. Do you want to know the reason? It’s ignorance and selfishness.
@@hillockfarm8404 I buy second hand, cheaper and better quality
@@hillockfarm8404 i mean look at stuff like shoes. i would much rather buy myself a pair of real leather dr martens for 300$ than buy 100$ sneackers. i know dr martens are far from the best out there, but their shoes easily last me 3 to 4 full years and are still usable. where as those 100$ sneackers will last me half a year max, if i wear them constantly.
@@altertopias Unfortunately second hand is now also saturated with fast fashion which was worn zero to few times. While the real vintage stuff sometimes costs more than it did when it was new (not even high end brands, just normal denims etc).
i am a 13 year old who found shein and got exited by the aesthetic quality of the clothes, my dad then told me all this and i was disgusted by the horrors that some people can do!
Same, I am 14 and refuse to buy anything from there. I'd rather thrift, buy from a sustainable brand, or teach myself to sew my own clothes.
You both are very insightful! Keep it up! U two are ahead of the curb! B proud!
@@WileyCylas 0
I'm very proud of you young ladies for setting a good example, by not purchasing from Shein, after you found out the bad practices they do. That's what makes a great leader, leading by example! ❤️
@@newsing33 who cares im opening a clothes sweatshop in Vietnam soon ringing in them bucks baby!
It's also important to remember that some of these "influencers" buy those clothes JUST to take pictures and post and then get rid of it.
Also, it is not every country that has nice looking plus size clothes, shein is inclusive.
Where I live, there's a sustainable denim store but the prices are between USD80 and USD200, a person who lives on a minimum wage can't afford that, they also need to eat, pay rent, pay bills.. and with that money, they can buy a lot from shein.
The problem is not only Sustainability but also Consumerism.
👏👏👏👏👏👏
I was looking for this exact comment, when I gained weight due to a medication that I was taking, I was pushed to SHEIN as my only option because of how size inclusive AND beautiful their clothing was, I started working hard to lose weight to use my old clothes again and avoid further shopping with them but in the end I WAS pushed to buy it because no other stores locally had clothing of my size that didn't make me feel like I had to hide my body or be shamed for it.
I think the bigger issue is the amount of clothes and why. I don't mind if someone needs to buy from shein, I did it once too cuz I wanted cheap clothing. The bigger issue is the amount people feel the need to buy because it's cheap.
The problem is consumerism and how it drove us to believe we need tons of clothes ( I was and in a way still am one of those too) but till just some years ago ( the ninetees even) each person owned like 5 pair of jeans max and they all were pricey because fast fashion as we actually know was not there yet, if you spend 80-200 dollars a year for one pair of good jeans, made with organic cotton, that will not harm the planet and the people but also not harm your health with those chemicals in a few years you got enough jeans to last almost a lifetime, taking care of clothes is a practice we have lost too, mending, repairing and taking good care in washing and drying can add a lot of years to clothes. This said if you ( I mean a general you, not you personally) can't or won't stop buying fast fashion at least don't let it be single use but make it last as long as possible. I will start making carpets out of clothes that went too far away ( unfortunately I own a lot of fast fashion from before understanding all this) to make it last as much as possible and not go to waste
Once we don’t force ourselves to keep up with trends, then we are truly free from this hamster wheel of needing the next new thing. And that takes time and education, as well as self respect.
People do get off the hamster wheel as they age but fast fashion companies is targeted toward young people (especially women) who is always the same as previous generations.
Buying many clothes isn't limited to trends. I am never in Trend but I just love all these second hand clothes. And I don't have a fixed style. I feel like something different every day.
That's why I have way too many clothes.
@@johnl.7754 I think the age thing was true up to perhaps a decade or two ago. Older people (40's, 50's, 60's) buy fast fashion. Look around any large city and you will see people of all ages wearing stuff from the same store. Look in the shops and you see a whole range of ages. There used to be a fashion-age that ended around 30yo or with the arrival of the first child or even marriage. Now, however, eternal youth is connected to clothing and so people will wear trendy clothes to feel young.
Trend cycles are also getting shorter thanks to tiktok. A year ago everyone was on the 80s-90s aesthetic and now we're seeing a Y2K revival. Tiktok overexposes some trends so quickly that people get sick of them and move on much faster than they ever used to do before social media.
Exactly, I won't even know Shein existed if it wasn't notified by DW.
So happy to see this topic being covered more! I’ve never bought from Shein and don’t intend to. Not the mention there was a recent report showing many of their clothes contain toxic chemicals in levels that can be harmful.
A big part of the issue is that a lot of people don't get paid enough. Sustainable clothes are expensive, and the styles available are limited. I tried to be as environmentally conscious as I could but I can't spend ~£100 a piece when I only have a ~£200 budget for luxury outgoings (eating out, transport, subscriptions and clothes).
The problem is that because the products are cheap, people overconsume and overbuy. You found a cool piece of cloth on SheIn and want to buy it? No problem. The problem comes when you buy 20 items at a time when you absolutely don't need it.
My thoughts exactly, I don't have a job so I buy what I can afford
Thrift stores
Most people buying from shame have money, they just want more bang for their buck at the cost of the environment and workers. Shoppers buy so often that it shows you money isn’t the problem, it’s greed.
Remember that there’s still apps like Vinted (which for me is an even cheaper alternative to Depop) and online thrift stores that you can use to fill the shopping void, with many vintage and one off items for a decent price. It will never be SHEIN prices but it really does feel a whole lot better shopping sustainably and knowing that you’re not contributing to whatever environmental mess that company makes !!
the problem is vinted is for rich hipsters. not facing the issue of cheap clothes.
I agree in part, but vinted is also a means of making us feel better about ourselves for wearing something once or twice and then buying something new, selling the ‘old’ item.
@@cellocello1762 theres plenty of people (like me) buying second hand from vinted and continually wearing them - so it does help (I hardly buy any fast fashion anymore, except for swimstuff and underwear)
I tried to buy several times in vented but the sellers didn’t respond to my messages. It’s really discouraging when you try to do better but this is the way you are treated. While waiting for at least one response my friends recommended me to buy from shein, but because my main goal was be more conscious I am still waiting for a reply
@@Lau-057 me too! I pretty much have bough everything from depop and vinted for the past 3 years and I love it
It was formerly named "She Inside", then changed into just "She-in", so that's how it's pronounced.
I was getting their newsletter back then lol
What does “she inside” even mean? Lol
@@rachelcookie321 I think it'd be something like "she's in(side)" as in their female consumers are tuned in with the trends, fashion and such
@@kiaraneves8852 so like “she’s in the know”?
Thank you for this explanation. I have been pronouncing it as "sheen" like Charlie sheen lol.
@@rachelcookie321 I still pronounce it sheen lol
one thing i can respect about shein is their size inclusivity. as somebody with a low-income who is plus size, i’ve had shein be my only option for clothing for events. it’s the only time i shop there and i feel so guilty, but there aren’t other options. i think it’s okay for people to shop there who need to, but buying a $2000 haul that you’re gonna put in the trash is awful
I'm with you on that! I'm a plus size too and locally I just don't have any options, only really expensive ones that are not necessarily to my taste.. it's been a couple of years now that I simply avoid local physical stores and buy only from SHEIN, because they have so many options in every size. And I feel guilty about it but when I try on clothes in local shops that reminds me of why I order from them..
Go to a thrift store.
i think it is fair enough. As long as you don't buy huge quantities, just because it is trendy and "chic" or "cute", it's fine.
Consider thrift stores as well, if you have any nearby.
You have a second option which is to lose weight.
Lose weight and you’ll save on food as well
I'm 26 years old and I've never shopped from Shein. I have always wanted to have quality clothing. That's something which my parents have taught me. Before the pandemic, I used to be very fond of buying denims but lately as I became more aware, thanks to you and others like you, I buy very less. I really hope people of my age start realising the cons of fast fashion!
Good for you then
there is alot of of low income family /individuals that can't relate, and can't buy quality clothes
same, I'm still in highschool so I live with my grandmother and all of my wealthy classmates order from Shein, because they can wear different clothes almost every day. I may wear the same thing for a long time but at least I won't be worried about where it's from and how it's made
Yep my parents taught me the same thing. I bought one of those Sherpa jackets from Shein and it had no structure to it like it was falling apart so I sold it for $5 and never looked back. My bf and friend were raving about the low prices Shein offers but I know it’s just too good to be true. I’m trying to figure out how I could make under 30 classic/long lasting clothing items work in my closet and just mix and match and keep them for at least 5 years. Do you shop at any stores that are relatively affordable with the qualities that I mentioned?
23 years and have not brought anything from here, Good, i dont know how to buy there i thought those sites were not safe
@@selcouthkalopsia775Buying fast fashion brand will make you buy twice or more due to the low quality.
For all of yall who are on a tight budget, I highly recommend going thrifting or using online thrift stores. There sustainable, cheap (not shein cheap but cheap), and way more fun then scrolling on an online website. Plus the quality of the clothes are definitely better than some shein new hunk of colorful plastic.
I agree! What I had to do was to learn about sustainable and high-quality materials. I go thrifting looking for cotton, cashmere, linen, wool. And, for the most part, I stay away from acrylic, polyester, rayon. The natural materials last longer and, in the cold Canadian winter, are much warmer, but they can also be very expensive unless thrifted. I have found many cashmere sweaters for under $10 at thrift stores. It's also so wonderful to be able to try new styles and silhouettes without spending exorbitant amounts of money on trends.
What are some good online thrift stores? Preferably those that carry a size 16.
@@vampirexion I haven't shopped at any online thrift stores but I have heard Thread up is pretty good. It definitely has size 16 but I would look into it.
@Google user what‘s the alternative? Only actually poor people should be allowed tp shop at thrift stores? How about we put the blame on thrift stores that are profiting off of the trend and raising prices and not the people who are trying to be more sustainable and shop 2nd hand
@Google user well there's tons and tons of unwanted clothing FROM thrift stores going to waste being shipped to some developing country. as a former thrift store worker, that is not the primary reason prices get pushed up. prices get pushed up becuase profits are necessary to pay staff and fund charities. I suggest EVERYONE shop at thrift stores because what's happening is just perfectly good clothing all going to waste. There is nowhere near the demand that should be happening.
I find myself somewhat pinned to a wall financially, so I do shop at Shein, but I make a habit of not throwing out stuff (I trade stuff with friends usually) and try to buy smart. I hope by creating less waste at least the damage I am doing is less. I am 24 and still have clothes from when I was 16.
Yeah I'm actually broke bit I make sure to not buy alot of items
Same I'm 24 and still fit in my dresses and clothes from hs or even middle school I didn't grow much with puberty 😂
I don't want to burst your bubble but giving these componies ANY amount of money contribures to them continuing to pollute the earth.
As someone who comes from a financially difficult background myself, I understand how incredibly hard it is for people with low income to consume in a environmentally and ethically friendly way.
What helped me was to write down the options that are available to me, from second stores to flea markets to ethical brands, and to see what works for you.
A lot of the times, you will profit so much from these choices as you will be able to find more durable and higher quality garments for the same price as these fast fashion stores!
@@jessicaschira4861 no thats not bursting my bubble its actually very helpful! I am moving to the USA soon and I have been told there is more choice there than Canada so maybe there is a good chance I can take up your suggestion
I'm 22 and I have a courduroy jacket that my sister (who is 7 years older than me) got when she was in middle school! So that jacket is close to two decades old and it's still going strong. It's really satisfying to know that a garment you regularly wear has been used for so long!
My pet peeve with people complaining that they can't afford trendy clothes otherwise is that it's basically all middle class people. Lower income people understand that they need to buy a few decent things, and they need to last, or buy second hand. You have to have some means to make a habit of buying throwaway clothing. I feel like that's something that needs to really be stressed. People like to say, "Oh, but I can't afford Zara for cool clothes" (or wherever.) but then they buy four tops that they'll only be able to wear a handful of times each. A piece from a somewhat better quality store is going to last longer. We really need to stress buying fewer quality pieces. You'll look better. It's better for the planet. It's better for workers.
Everything you buy should sting a little. If it doesn't sting a little, it means you need to be saving up to buy something a bit better.
Yeah. I think middle-class people aren't very class-aware. Their idea on whether they have much money or not is not based.
That's a good tip at the end. I'm gonna take it with me.
I think another thing is that even if you must buy from fast fashion, it doesn’t mean you have to contribute to over consumption. Some people in these hauls buy more clothes at once than people have in their closets. It’s an insane amount of stuff that surely one doesn’t actually derive much pleasure from after their initial arrival. I think at least taking steps to cut down on the amount u buy could be good as well
I disagree. With the recent trend of upper classes thrifting, many thrift shops have taken an advantage to this and have greatly increased their prices. Thrift shops have been gentrified. This makes it difficult for people with low income to just “buy second hand” and when you can have new, trendy clothing for a fraction of the price of something that is second hand, it seems convenient and reasonable to order off of SHEIN. I don’t blame people for doing so because it’s affordable, not everyone has the money to buy something that stings every time. Many of us live paycheck to paycheck and it’s difficult enough as is it.
Zara is also fast fashion LOL
I kinda disagree because at least in my country, the lower income usually buys any clothing that looks good and very cheap although the quality is poor. This is because they have no choice, as long as they have something to wear then sustainability/quality is out of question. Usually the ones with the awareness of quality etc are the (upper?) middle income.
I have not shopped at Shein, but I have been hearing about it more and more through random people/celebrities that I follow on social media like Instagram. I was curious about it, so I watched this video. Very good work on reporting on this! Thank you!
Yes, I've heard about it from some friends.
Every now and then you see these white bustiers coming full of clothes and accessories of all sorts.
All to do some Tik-Tok, a few posts on Ista, or bought just because they are cheap.
I felt that something was wrong and I immediately worried about the quality, the origin, the welfare, and this video confirmed them.
I write as a low-budget college student who has been wearing the same clothes for over 6 years (and I still like them).
Just to remember: if you have no money, the greenest thing is NOT to buy.
Exactly !
Exactly. These girls have no money and they want to look like millionaires.
I roll my eyes when I see comments claiming you need to buy expensive designer brand clothing for it to be durable...
Even fast fashion brands like Shien, Zara, and H&M have durable clothes if you just look for the clothing made with good material - although you may have to pay a slightly more premium than the $3 price tag. Stop feeling obligated to purchase luxury brands because that's simply marketing. The best recourse to this situation is: buying less clothing, becoming more knowledgeable about durable fabrics/materials so that the clothing you do purchase last at least for a few years, and finally thrifting or wearing second hand clothes. [An additional and helpful investment would be learning how to sew so that you can make repairs on softer damaged clothes, making them last even longer].
It's bizarre when people blame "fast fashion" (usually equating it to affordable clothing companies like H&M and Zara) for environmental problems when it's consumers purchasing an excessive amount of clothing that's the issue. I.e., if luxury goods were as cheap as SHEIN, it would create a nearly identical problem as SHEIN. The only reason why luxury brands are not included in this discussion (when they should be) is because there is a much higher cost of entry on how many and how much people are willing to spend for the products, which doesn't say much about how the companies, themselves, are tackling this issue.
People should treat clothing like food: you're not going to know you're purchasing healthy food by looking at the brand or the price tag of the item, but you will know if you look at its nutritional label. Likewise, if you want durable or environmentally friendly clothing, look at the material of the clothes. Furthermore, you can't just eat an inordinate amount of healthy food to be healthy; you need to diet properly to be healthy. Therefore, if you want a healthy environment, be mindful of your purchases.
Finally, regarding sustainability in terms of "business ethics": I'm sorry to say but most luxury brands still use imported materials from sweatshops when they can definitely afford not to. Sure, the clothing may be made in countries with better working condition, but the material, itself, is usually going to be the same as those used in sweatshops. So, please, don't be deceived when you see a "Made in Italy" label thinking the entire product was made in Italy because that just means the product was manufactured in Italy; it does not mean the materials were from Italy. The only way to know for sure is if the company has transparency over its supply-side, which won't be the case for nearly all, if not all, large clothing companies, including luxury brands.
Yeah true! I saw that Dolce & Gabbana just recently pledged to stop using animal furs… like, it’s a bit late, no?
I agree. I bought shein Once because they have pretty plus size dresses in affordable prices. My size is like 14/16 US size, and it's hard to find in Asia, unless you want fork over ten times the price at Zara. Don't even talk about high-brand goods. I bought three items and it has lasted 4 years or so and I will still be wearing them for much longer.
This isn't really true. Most fast fashion brands don't even have 100% cotton shirts.
wow knowledgeable thanks for this post so your advice is :
1) don't base the quality of clothes on its price, but on its fabric
2) buy less
3) learn to sew
4) don't be fooled by labels like made in italy
Finally a smart comment 👌🏻👌🏻... Pd I have seen another documentary from this same channel, where they captured how evern luxury brands are manufactured in the same places that shein does, the only difference is that the labels and packaging are put in Europe 🙄
Honestly, I think one issue that's really not being adressed here is the lack of affordable clothing, I went clothes shopping for the the first time in a few months, and the price of clothes literally changed directly in order of magnitudes. At the cheapest shop I could get a jacket for 18 quid, at another shop across the street they sold jackets for 800 quid, and on one other it was 80 quid. Obviously I ended up getting the 80 quid one, but if I was someone with a slightly lower budget I could've perhaps gotten one for 50 quid that was still comparably more well sourced and well made than the 18 quid one, and since I had a slightly higher budget I might have spent 150 quid on a high quality jacket meant to last 10 years rather than only expensively branded ones being available in that price range.
These days even to get a slightly higher quality you generally have to pay 10x more.
I disagree. While it is an issue, it is too complex of an issue to be able to "fix". It needs to be normalized for people to start paying more for clothing that is ethically sourced/created, environmentally sustainable, and higher quality so that we can get out of this fast fashion mindset. I understand not having the money to afford a lot of clothing + wanting to follow trends as someone who is younger but that is still completely doable while likely even being able to spend less annually. The issue is regulations and buyers not being able to find information about the pieces they are buying. In my opinion there needs to be some sort of "ingredients" label like there is with all food now. What the pieces are made out of, where that fabric was sourced from, how it was made, and the impact it had on the environment to create the article of clothing. It is next to impossible to find these things out as buyers currently, and even if we could, no one is informed enough about the topic to know what it all means. And even THEN, people think buying the cheaper clothing item saves them the most money when that has literally never been reality.
Look for quality and get them when is on clearance. I recently bought a light down jacket for $137 regular price is over $350. It was end of season sale 40% off and an additional 40% off since the store only have one left. 850 down fill very good quality. I also buy all of clothes when it is at least 30% off. Most Levi's jeans is around $80 but on sale I bought them at $39. Never paid regular price
They're good for kids clothes. I get my younger siblings stuff from shien cause when they're all rapidly growing out of everything it's a handy affirdable option you can just donate once they've outgrown. Not to mention the kids clothes are cute so they love wearing them. Quality is always a hit or miss tho
@@michaelyun2407and here I am buying Costco jeans for $30 lol
@Professor Frog That's why I buy clothes that's never out of fashion and still look good. Classic nice looking blank T-shirt with pair of jeans or shorts. Hoodie, good qualify wool sweaters, button shirts. Already buy clothing that fits you body type and looks good on you. Never buy into fast fashion coz after a year you will look ridiculous with those clothes (super skinny jeans come to mind).
I personally have made a commitment to never buy from Shein and I have so far succeeded but I will admit it is hella tempting. With prices so cheap, so many options, and any piece that I’ve ever dreamed of having being on there, it’s difficult to not fall into the company’s trap. I would say 90% of my clothes come second hand from thrift stores and I’m pretty proud of that. I personally do buy a lot of clothes cause my style changes constantly but I feel better knowing that my pieces aren’t supporting companies that take advantage of workers and add onto climate change. Overall I’m glad thrifting has become more mainstream but I think it needs to become even more so. It’s cheap (depending on the one you go to) so low income families or individuals can afford it, there are lots of options so you can usually find something similar to what you’re looking for if you go regularly, and there are nice/high quality things there. I have found so many things from banana republic, Ralph Lauren, north face, etc that were all in decent quality and sometimes even new. Overall it’s a choice you have to make and it’s not as hard as you think
from what i gather, a lot of people still shop fast fashion bc it's cheaper, carry more sizes, or that they simply dont have access to good thrift/secondhand store and i understand their situation. when i was studying abroad where i had access to good thrift stores, i hardly ever shop fast fashion. now that im back to my country, thrift stores are no longer accessible. we only have online curated thrift stores with ridiculous price tags.
what i think is problematic is the excessive consumption done by the ppl who can obviously shop more sustainably but spent thousands on multiple shein hauls just to throw them out in the next 2 weeks.
Yeah there's nothing wrong with buying fast fashion cheap clothes, it's the quantity. People overconsume and throw away because it's cheap.
I’m a Boomer, shop at recycled and consignment fashion stores, rarely buy online. Never heard of Shein… but I’m glad for this report. It gives perspective on the depth of mind-control manipulation used by companies focused entirely on profit.
Jehanna Blondeau La boomeuse you must be Québécoise.. consignment fashion stores are something i remember hearing about as kid and i am the child of later years boomeurs.. there is like one per city in the western hemisphere .But as we age we actually need less clothes and we tend to opt for what's comfortable and less showy. it low key makes sense that you'd shop less online . i can understand why kids these days buy clothes like McD , its like the urge to knock the boots 7 times a day, everything is heightened. its so hard to stop them . they are frying this planet to ashes.
Another industry that abuses their workers and the environment is fishing industry. We need to do something about this.
yeah! laws more engaged wit our current issues in the environmental aspect. And educate childrens and young people that buying items which will make you look "cool" is not actually "cool", you can make gorgeous outfits with second-hands or DIY items.
Modern slavery just exits in more or less every industry and is a darkside of himanities. It may not be eliminated from the world, but we humans continue to combat work slavery and defend human rights.
Ahh yes, this one is so much more brutal than one can imagine. I was shook to the core when I found out about it a few years back. Just absolutely horrible.
i really recommend for y'all to look into communism or at least socialism. we can never be sustainable under capitalism because you can't really make profit off of sustainability. the only way to save the environment is by changing the whole system
hard to say , cuz now let's say if these company didn't hire them what are they gonna do? they do this because they didn't have much choice if they don't do it others will that's the problem.
The biggest reason why Shein packages have come to our home is because my daughter is a young plus size woman and Shein's curvy clothes for women are cute and true to size. It's very difficult for a young woman to find plus size clothing that doesn't look like it's made for grandmas. Hopefully someone will come up with attractive and ethically sourced plus size clothing soon!
@@maple_vanilla Actually, when I found out about the horrible world of fast fashion in a documentary, I did find a company that produced its clothes in the US, that were made of organic cotton and bamboo as well as shirts that were made of organic hemp. I bought in bulk and have 24 identical shirts that I wear all the time. But I'm not plus size or in my late teens or early 20s. I tried getting shirts for my daughter there, (I believe I ordered 12 or 24 of them as well), even though they said they were a 2XL, they still didn't have the right fit. When clothing is made bigger to be plus size, most companies don't account for how they need to change them aside from making them wider.
They're a lot more options for me than there for my daughter. If I order a shirt in the right size, more often than not it's going to fit me just fine. If she orders a shirt in what is supposed to be the right size, more often than not she's going to have to return it.
Yeah or do what me and most people do get some exercise it does not matter how good your clothes are if you look like Jabba the hut I mean being 5 or so kilos over weight is fine plus who cares about fashion the only thing I care about is what can you do not what you can buy
@@smeagol7247 what are you even talking about? Exercising does not necessarily mean you will lose weight. There are many factors in weight gain and loss such as medication, metabolism, certain illnesses and conditions, and lack of access.
Yes! In my country xl biggest size you can get. And it’s not true to size. Sometimes I can fit in xl sometimes it’s feels like m. Only on shein I found that 0xl fits like a glove. I can finally buy cute dresses and jeans
@@fart63 AT LEAST TRY! it might not make you lose weight but it's not like it's gonna harm you, everyone should excercise whether they are "Plus Size" or not.
-Me being *obese* most of my life.
Losing weight was the best _decision_ of my life.
And excercising lowers the required caloric deficit threshold for losing weight, look, some people have disorders, but being overweight is not good for anyone's health
Take it from me-as one of few guys with lots of high end stuff in closet, that higher prices don’t automatically mean higher quality, although some of my favorite clothes that cost ridiculously high amounts HAVE LASTED through tons of dry cleaning and usage compared to cheaper items. I didn’t even know about this app until coming across this article.
I remember when they were just a random brand on Aliexpress, their growth is crazy
P pcpf
Dude... I had no idea they started on Ali
@@Unconsciouscreativity yup! They were one of those “trusted” brands with a bunch of followers
I discovered them when they were called SheInside, at the time I only knew one or two influencers that talked about it
Well this explains the 'quality' garbage.
I'm a 70-year old Boomer. Yes, I've heard of Shein - through documentaries like this one. No, I've never bought anything from them. I shop at bricks & mortar stores, which frequently are also secondhand or thrift stores. When I buy online, it will be to support a TH-cam channel or charitable foundation.
Very nice
Brick and mortar stores won't last much longer than you. Retail is dying like television.
Auntie Noralee, B&M stores are the way to go at least you can feel the fabric yourself.
my dude
I’m a 22 year old Gen Z’er and I shop at any thrift store I have the chance.
I think its ok to buy from fast fashion (whether the more expensive ones like Zara and Uniqlo or Shein) as fast fashion pieces tend to be more affordable. I think the key is to consume less instead, buy less number of clothes and only buy those that you truly like
Hi Shin, thanks for your comment! Have you checked out this Planet A report yet?
📺 H&M and Zara: Can fast fashion be eco-friendly?
th-cam.com/video/00NIQgQE_d4/w-d-xo.html
Let us know what you think in the comments! ✌
Exactly! I have some H&M shirts, Zara tops, forever 21 items too and I’ve had them for years! I think people need to buy things they’ll wear for a long time. It’s sad that people see clothes as disposable
Part of the issue with fast fashion is how undurable they are, so you end up replacing clothes sooner.
This is why I started sewing again. There is so much beautiful fabric from thrift stores (sheets, quilt covers, pillow cases, men’s shirts etc) and I love spending $50, helping out a charity by buying a heap load of stuff and making one of a kind items that I hope to sell in the next 12 months online. Going thrifting (for me at least) is fun and exciting in the way fast fashion buying is. Plus I get something indie and unique that doesn’t make look like a carbon copy of everyone else. My goal in the next 2 years is to be making all of my own clothes from bras and undies to pajamas and everything in between. And to make things for my house (rugs, curtains, throw pillows etc) so that I never have to buy fabric item brand new again
Wow how did you learn how to sow? How long did it take?
Actually it is waaay more fun to thrift shop in my opinion
@@jasminecontreras7341 I learned from TH-cam and then "shopped" my grandmother's sewing supply stash! haha
I'm guilty of buying from Shein a few years ago, before it was as well-known. I needed to build a professional wardrobe quickly & on a shoe-string budget. If I had known the environmental impact I never would have, but from the pieces that didn't fall apart after a few washes, I've managed to save them & continue wearing them.
Don’t feel too guilty over buying on SHEIN when you were on a tight budget and apart from that it seems like you kept using the items you bought
Why would you be guilty? Every fast fashions doing this but only SHEIN is the one to blame. Look at the title. This is purely political.
@@florencebaendes2853 This isn't political, its just that shein is something that was/is very trendy now (moreso than other brands, so they likely just included it to get more reach). Personally speaking, I get ads/sponsored posts from shein in my feeds on social media at least once a day, and I don't even buy clothes online. Also, DW has made videos about fast fashion before that call out other fast fashion brands (they literally have one calling out Zara and HM, check it out), please don't go off about this video being some political stunt lol
I started shopping at Shein a few months ago because of the weight that I gained and it was hard finding inexpensive clothes that allowed me to feel comfortable with my weight gain but … I realized the damaged and haven’t bought anything since.
I think the one good thing I did was I never bought from Shein. People recommended me this a couple of times, however I was skeptical on how long they would last in my wardrobe. Even when I couldn’t afford, I would wear what I have or buy second hand or only buy during sales, but never from Shein.
I guess it can't all be up to consumers, fast fashion is already hurting the 2nd hand clothes market. It's really heartbreaking to see something so time and energy intensive be made disposable.
Did you see those people (oh, they are so not kids) dumping carton*s* full of clothes? I would understand if they were five. Those many? With every phone that they use to buy those clothes having search engine where you can type "fashion emissions" with *every* news channel shouting climate crisis? No. Sorry. Its consumers if getting new clothes is the only way you get *that* feeling.
@@neelroy2918 Fashion industry doesn't have any regulation at all. They are operating mostly legally. Isn't that a huge problem too - that human rights abuses are legal?
Every fifth top at my local thrift store is from a fast fashion brand like zaful, sheik or romwe
@@neelroy2918 I see garbage bags full of clothes at my apartment complex tossed out. Not sure if they all were soiled or still had wear in them. Families here never think about donating their clothes when done using them.
@@Helaw0lf I know. You're lucky if your city can actually use donated clothes. In here situation was so bad when they arranged clothes donation drive they had to travel far in rural regions because everyone had more than enough clothes and nobody would take their old clothes.
Honestly I bought clothes on Shein not to 'fit in' but because they cater to clothes that I need in affordable prices compared to big companies.
shein IS a big company. the only difference is that children make the clothes in sweatshops for like 50 cents a day. also i’m pretty sure you don’t need these clothes, you just want them.
@@save_bandit Yeah, if a company has multiple warehouses and factories all across the globe then I'd definitely consider it a big company. I'm unsure how people can look at something like that and think "Yep, small business".
I remember when Shein brands started to pop up in my social feeds. I knew, from a glance, this company is another fast fashion brand. Thank you for bring this issue up.
Thank god they actually touched on the affordability of the clothes. Not everyone can afford to buy from the competitors especially when shein offer items so cheaply. An element they failed to mention is the accessibility to plus size clothing shein offers. Coming from a developing nation plus sized clothing is not easily available and where it is it is a novelty and therefore expensive. Shein's practices are no doubt bad from a humanitarian and ecological perspective but for many they remain one of the cheaper, more accessible clothing choices and that's going to keep them and others like them in the market for a long time.
I promised myself to buy second hand clothes the rest of my life and only when I need them. So far I am accomplishing it :)
Why is there so much pressure on personal responsibility? That only allows companies like Shein to deflect blame onto the individual consumer without making any actual changes.
I agree
i agree but i think its because theres nothing we can do about shein but at least we can stop others from buying there when they dont need too
And we of course need to vote for parties that are willing to fight against these (big) corporations.
@B Luga political parties ?
There is no ethical consumption under capitalism.
Who do you think should stop them? Governments who profit from these multi-million dollar businesses?
Of course they won' stop as long as they can squeeze money out of people's pockets. So I agree, the individual is not to blame but we are responsible for our choices and If we decide to pump all of our money into the hands of these companies, we are directly enabling them to continue to harm the environment and other people's lives!
What makes me sad is that I've bought like 2 dresses and a pair of socks from SHEIN, and to me the quality was great. The dresses are comfortable and give me the silhouette I like the most, in a style that I don't really see in my city under the price range I can afford. And it makes me sad cuz everybody says SHEIN is garbage, and I can only reflect if everything that I usually buy, living in the southern hemisphere, is actual garbage and the northern hemisphere has that much quality that what I usually have are simply craps to them.
Not to mention the price of shipping to the southern hemisphere. Less good brands to choose from and we get to pay more to get them.
@@esmeraldagreengate4354 and the devaluation of currency. I live in Brazil, and 1 USD is pretty much 5.50 BRL on average, and has been like that for over a year now. When I bought those SHEIN dresses, it was like 1 USD = 3 BRL, and that was still more expensive than ever in my lifetime.
What matters the most at the end of the day is quantity. If you're buying a few dresses and socks there and they ended up being good quality and youcan get good use from them, then good for you! The issue is people who buy boxes and boxes of this stuff just because they can, and because it's cheap, and wear things 10 times max then throw them away or replace it.
Agreed. I bought a few fits last month from SHEIN and I absolutely love them and they’re incredibly high quality.
don’t worry, i don’t think anyone would blame people who live in poor countries and literally cannot afford good quality clothes or sustainable options for buying fast fashion or claim them to be the problem.
Ever since I read Over Dressed by Elizabeth Cline, the whole impact of the fast fashion industry has been on my mind: labor issues, worker safety, environmental impact. Somewhere on TH-cam is a video about disposing of unwanted garments. If you take them to a thrift shop, they will pitch at least half. Those garments end up in countries like Senegal. The items that they see as unsellable are burnt - and a majority of the products are polyester!! everything is wrong with Shein, H&M, Zara!
I would NEVER shop at Shein. But I see those hauls everywhere and it makes me sad. I don't really agree that a lack of funds is a valid argument. Most people who use it buy way to many clothes that they don't need and never wear or that don't last long or don't even fit. "I don't have money so I exploit those who have even less" doesn't sound right to me... There are a lot of other options to get clothes without spending a lot of money.
I wear a plus size and love how my Shein clothes fit. Sadly Shein is one of the few brands that offer a lot of clothing options in bigger sizes (up to 3XL) so unless more non-fast fashion brands do the same, a lot of consumers will still purchase from brands like Shein that could give them more options.
Size and its actually looking modern, usually plus size is something only grandma would wear.. So this is one of the reasons why I like Shein too. Even if I manage to find plus size outside of Shein, it's usually very expensive, even more then xs
Lose the weight. Thank me later
@@williamsnake6352 Lose the skull, it doesn't protect anything.
@@williamsnake6352 lose the attitude
@@soogymoogi you're right. She should just not lose the weight... I'm sorry. I didn't mean to ask her to lose weight. My bad.
I used to shop from SheIn but as I became more aware of the environmental repercussions I switched to more sustainable options. I was a student then and just like everybody I faced the budget issue. I didn't give up and I turned to the used clothing market like local goodwill and thredUp. It was the best decision I have made for myself because it has made me more aware of my style, the effects of modern day advertising on me and helps me save a lot. I have been able to wear better brands, nicer clothes and best of all, at affordable prices. Buying used clothing is equivalent to wearing something you already have owned for a while.
I have the app. I go in occasionally to look for clothes I like, add to cart and then close the app without buying anything. Then I go to a physical second hand store and try to find something similar at an even less cost than Shein. Let's face it, these Shein products will end up in these stores anyway due to fast fashion.
Same here haha
Which stores sell same clothes as shein?
@@studydesign2071 Second hand stores.
Same here lol using the photo search feature really helps w that
"I don't have the budget"
As a student, I bought sweatpants for over 30€ (I don't even remember the exact sum, I think it was more). After 13 years, the fabric starts to wear out a little. I bought a (Patagonia) t-shirt for 30€, five years in, frequent wearing (lovely t-shirt, I wear it to work and for sporting), no sign of wear
Long time ago, I bought technical/outdoor pants on sale for 70€. It seems like a massive price tag back then. In 15 years, I hiked up dozens of mountains, walked hundreds of kilometers and cycled thousands in them. A lot of them in harsh weather - mud, frost, snow. Granted, they have been re-stitched in a few places but I still use them to commute to work.
Let me know how long your 5€ garment lasts for and then we can calculate "price per unit of time".
I bet that in the end, the cheap is actually expensive.
We need to stop this destructive nonsense. It also saps time from people, as you have to spend a lot more time shopping. That's in addition to the workers' suffering and environmental damage.
Buy quality, wear it a long time.
And if you are a student, go for a hike instead of a beer and you will have the money.
Where was your t-shirt made?
I've bought clothes for 790 lkr (around 3usd) and they're still like brand new 3 years later. I have second hand clothes that I bought for even less that have lasted me for more than 6 years. It really depends on how well you take care of the clothes too. Unfortunately, I am not able to afford something above 1500 lkr and that's with me only buying once or twice a year.
I'm not sure if fast fashion works the same here, because nearly everything is around 1000lkr and people don't see that as cheap.
@@lemonsarachandra8547 6-12$ and a few items per year doesn't sound like fast spending to me. So I guess you don't participate in fast fashion.
Not everyone has 70 euros available to spend on just a pair of pants… I swear sometimes you privileged people act like you’re sooo righteous and good. Stop with the cap. No. Not everyone can just go out of their way and spend more than 5 euros on a shirt, just because you say so.
good for you. Lucky me I found men's sweatpants for $10 in some noname store at the mall and they lasted me for years. low prices don't automatically mean non-sustainable and poor quality. before fast fashion came into the mass they used to sell quality products for the same price.
I have shopped a couple of times at Shein. In general the quality is quite good for the price in my opinion. Whateve I buy, I usually wear for years and years. I like that Shein has a petite section, because it's very hard to find clothes that me and their clothes fit really well.
The thing that bothers me is: how do I know the more expensive companies are not getting their clothes from the same places as the cheap ones, but just asking more money for it? Most clothes are made in China, Bangladesh etc. I doubt the working conditions differ much between companies...
This is why I really love thrift shopping. It's cheap, and I find unique and cute stuff that is being saved from the landfill.
Agreed! It’s like treasure hunting 😍🙌🏻
Exactly its so fun! Also, if you end up not liking a shirt or growing out of it you can donate it to a thrift store and some of them will give you a discount on your next purchase it’s great
Absolutely agree. But at least Shein has reasonable prices. Other fast fashion companies like Zara and H&M do the same thing as Shein, the only difference is that their prices are higher. But then you can see what their products are really worth when you take a look at their black friday sales prices: they drop by half, which means they're still making tons of money at discounted prices. So it's not just shein, but all of fast fashion. Also: who noticed the other brands at the bottom of the Fashion transparency index? D&G and Max Mara, more "high end" brands, are also there. This is not to say that I'm defending Shein, my point is: what Shein does is not ok, but at least they keep their prices down for everyone to purchase, while more expensive brands are also not ok but their prices are sky high. Still, I very rarely hear of journalism talking about how brands like D&G or Max Mara are a problem.
Ah yes "Others are bad too". SHEIN is just up and coming and that is why they were picked. You can actually do research and find out which brands are on top. There are cheap brands that don't exploit or at least try to avoid that.
As a kid I used to not want to wear "Zeeman" stuff because that was for poor people and kids might pick on you. Now, people are unashamed by cheap stuff from Primark. But what Primark put into making it "fast fashion" and needs new designs multiple times a year, Zeeman does not. They have more time/money to check on the places the get the same shirt from forever. So I guess now I would not be ashamed. I just have money to buy clothes that are a bit cuter and similar in durability. Company is far from perfect, but at least they were trying. I will forever love their idea of a 30 euro weddingdress.
I’m gonna make a throwback…. My mom was raised in Czechoslovakia. Back then when someone wanted jeans or something from West, you needed to go to special store called Tuzex. For my moms 15th birthday, she got an Lewis jeans that cost like 240€ back then… and she told me that they were undestructable… now she is sometimes looking for jeans at around 30-40€ price point and she is mad when they wear out at around year after buying … The thing I’m trying to say here is easy… Buy quality over quantity and when you’re gonna feel bored with that, sell it second hand.
Me looking at you with my 10yo 30€ no-name jeans 🤡
I used to shop at shein too, it’s cheap and fast delivery. That was until I stumble upon a design on a t shirt that is actually by an instagram artist I admire. I realize shein has been stealing a lot of art!!!
I work as a graphic designer so I understand how irresponsible it is. I immediately stopped shopping there. I tell myself “Remember to think of what you stand for.”
I teach fashion design, I am trying to educate students about this problem but is difficult to compete with what Shein offers. The industry needs to be regulated.
I’m seventeen and in NYC, most of my peers- including myself- are openly against Shien. I and other tend to buy clothes at vintage/second-hand clothes stores or buy from individuals on platforms like Depop. However I have received Shien products as gifts from older relatives, which I found surprising. Overall this might just be my specific bubble of my generation. I am not sure about my generation overall and I can’t speak for all of them, but the interviewed girls in this video don’t speak for all of us either.
Glad to hear it! You and your peers are ethical & doing the right thing. I buy second hand and avoid fast fashion
When it comes to clothes I prefer quirky patterns/designs rather than brands, and I typically can only find those on sites like Shein. Or even thrift stores. Anywhere but mainstream stores where everything is bland or overpriced.
I never even knew what fast fashion was, I just liked the styles I saw on there. I still wear stuff from there years later too. If you take care of it it'll last
That still doesn't make it ethical to shop there.
As long as you are aware of trying to not overconsume and only buy what you need, its ok. The burden shouldnt be bared by the consumers only (except shein influencer hauls).
I have heard of SHEIN and have seen their advertisements on Facebook. I have yet to shop there. I have steered away from buying clothes seasonally. I’ve taken a good look at my closet and decided I have more than enough. But I not perfect and have given in to the temptation of Costco.
I took up minimalism back in 2013. It really can open your eyes to the concept of legit consumerism. I've never bought from this company, it's pretty rare that I purchase even a new product when it comes to clothes (except underwear/socks/shoes), I primarily shop from Goodwill.
100% same here, I'm a minimalist, I buy nothing & if I have to, its thrift. It is a very liberating, ethical & free way to live!
I am a maximalist myself that tried minimalism for a while but it's just not for me, this said I try to make it all sustainable nonetheless
Ive shopped on shein and found their quality to be acceptable half of the time. Items with thousands of reviews are a better bet than ones without. Most of the clothing I own already come from sweatshops, so the ethical difference isnt huge. I went to shein for fun pieces every once in a while, but I have a full closet now filled with pieces that I love and want to keep. Thrifting is fun, but going to a nice thrift shop takes over an hour one way.
And people go through thrift stores and flip the good stuff. I hate them.
@@prittyugly86 flippers have the same opportunity as you at thrift stores...
I agree that most of the clothes are from sweatshops unless a person can afford high end.
when you’re lower class even lower middle class, shein is mostly what you can afford to buy in mass, alongside thrift stores. H&M, Zara, and other fast fashion stores have gotten pretty pricey
Then dont buy in mass.
The problem is buying in mass
@@raapyna8544 the problem is increasingly unaffordable fast fashion
I agree, I do not buy in mass though. I do however wear all that I buy and keep it for as long as possible.
@@lolomar if you can buy in mass, you can buy high quality clothing.
I’m very proud to say that I’ve never, ever bought clothes on shein. I have friends who told be to buy from them but I didn’t give in to the peer pressure.
Same this needs more awareness
so what?
but do you shop at H&M or Zara etc? if yes, you cant be Proud
@@ori4627 i don’t unless of course it’s gifted. Most of my cloths are from local business or I custom make them with a seamstress. If ever I do receive clothes from H & M, etc I make sure that it would last me a long time
7:07 I'm literally wearing a €2 hoodie and €4 trousers that I thrifted. A low budget is absolutely not a valid excuse to buy planet-killing worker-abusing design-stealing low-quality rubbish that presents itself as clothing. Smh
When I first discovered Shein. I became so excited because I was in a darker place in my life and tended to treat it with retail therapy. But I didn’t have any money, so I would always go for cheaper options. But even then I would consider what I was buying.
Even if you can’t afford ethical and environmentally conscious. You can always buy products that you will use for a long time, donate your old clothes (even if it is in poor condition you can donate the materials), have a clothes swap buddy, or buy vintage for cheaper.
Honestly this is a more viable option for most. A lot of the comments on here contain an all or nothing mentality which most people won't be able to uphold. Your comment reminds me of the economic concept of "utils". It's a theory that explains that even if a product is more expensive but you genuinely like it and can see yourself using it often, you'll get more use out of it than buying a cheaper product. Though SHEIN is cheap, if you're buying products that you really like, you're less likely to keep coming back for more since your needs are met with the original product of your choice. Ergo, less waste
I do find it interesting how the generation and group of people most likely to be vocal 'supporters of the environment' or whatever are also most likely to partake in fast fashion; one of the most significant contributing factors of needless waste in the environment, and ironically happens to be one of the things that consumers can make the most impact on at the individual choice level.
i think its because of how easily young people are influenced by things they see online, other reasons are that young people specifically young adults usually struggle with money the most so if theres a company that has good looking cheap clothes it makes sense that theyve become so popular. also trends are most popular from when youre a teenager to a young adult
Let’s blame young people for their hypocrisy and not take responsibility as experienced adults. Let’s continue to be part of all the problems. That’s productive.
Because as human beings we want to appear to follow good values to fit in socially, but we don’t truly always practice it ourselves.
These kids live in a world dictated from the phone outward. Reality is just a concept to them, they have no connection to what has built the world to this moment and how integrated they are into a system so destructive.
its a large group of people. i highly doubt they are all the same. just like your generation has environmental supporters and extreme consumerism within one group
I’m 24 and I used to work at Forever 21 when I was 18/19 and loved the clothes. Honestly some pieces held up over the years. I know for a fact if Shein was a thing back then that I would’ve been all over it. However, over the years I’ve just… stopped with fast fashion. I don’t buy as many clothes anymore. I’ve sold most of my clothes through 3rd party reselling apps. Everything in my closet right now is something that I genuinely like. Plus, they’re sustainable. Instead of buying 10 shirts at once, now I can buy 2-3 that will last me a long time and the material is just so much better. It’s not *really* that expensive when compared to how much you’re spending on fast fashion. I think it’s doable. Maybe not for everyone, but I believe most of the people making these haul videos can definitely afford to buy sustainable clothing lmao it’s yucky that they’re promoting such a horrid action and brand
If anyone actually cared this would be banned from the App Store and they’d be buying secondhand clothes. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with buying secondhand or just not buying anything at all
It banned here in India for more than a year.
The same people who say they can’t afford sustainable clothing purchase 500 dollars worth of clothes on Shein..
and don't even use half of them
@@esg721 rightt 🤦♀️
Not true I actually Can’t afford more than shein and the most I’ve spent at once is $30 and I could barely afford that. But I got a lot which I needed with that money compared to one item I could get for that price at ANOTHER fast fashion place never mind a sustainable retailer.
@@eliz3225 exactly, you’re not who I’m talking about. If you could barely afford $30 worth of stuff from them in one purchase that website is meant for you. It’s the people who spend $500 in one purchase on shein who can obviously afford to shop sustainable but choose not to. Fast fashion is meant for people who can’t afford sustainable clothing only. Therefore, it’s okay if you shop there 😊
@@eliz3225 just go thrift shopping then
I bought their stuff once because it was the only place I could find a very specific item I was looking for. I added a few other items in just because it was so cheap. One of them ended up being one of my favourite tops I wear all the time, but other than that I don't wear the rest as much and even the specific item I bought it for wasn't what I was looking for ultimately. It's too bad, and seeing reports like this make me determined to never buy from there again.
And *THANK YOU* to this channel for dubbing instead of subtitling! It's annoying when videos are almost entirely listenable, but they choose to subtitle.
And *WAAAAAY MORE IMPORTANTLY*, dubbing = accessibility. Subtitling is inaccessible to visually impaired people, people who cannot read the language in which the subtitles are written (yes, it's possible to be nearly fluent in a language while being illiterate in said language), or experience sensory overload as a result of subtitles.
I think the concept of sustainability being too expensive when it comes to clothing is absolutely ridiculous. The most sustainable thing you can do is NOT BUY
And not own any clothing. Right.
@@justpeachy6450 ikr XD I don't do fast fashion or buy too much stuff but I'm from India. I have second hand clothes from family members and my own clothes are given to our house help etc because there is such a big divide in rich and poor. I still need basic clothing, it's still expensive for me to buy even one pair of jeans. They do run out after years. NOT BUY works for extra stuff bought for trends, not for basics. Eg. A sustainable t-shirt costs 2000 and a basic brand costs 600, fast fashion costs 250 something. I cannot afford that 2000. I don't remember the exact statement but rich people can buy better stuff which lasts longer. Oh well....
@@justpeachy6450 The key is to own less clothing, because how many do you need, really? Own staple pieces that you can mix and match into a lot of different looks. All my clothes are from H&M, Zara, and other fast fashion brands, but so far they've lasted 5+ years. It's all I can afford, so I try to make them last as long as possible in the best condition possible. I wish thrifting was an option for me, but it's simply not because it's not prevalent where I live.
@@Kirihere Yes im from India too. Shopping was never a common activity in my house because we made do with the clothes we had. :)
@@justpeachy6450 people buy extra clothes unnecessarily nowadays, is what im saying. college kids be saying they cant afford expensive clothes and then go shopping every month. well yeah thats why you're probably broke???
It's mostly about efficiency and competition. Anyway I only buy new clothes when my old ones are unwearable.
my old clothes were not thrown out. I would see my mom using it to clean furnitures lol
I buy my clothes second hand on-line. I wonder about the impact of shopping this way. Every minute spent searching on line doesn't make my electricity bill go up noticeably but it must cost something somewhere. The packaging materials and postal services have got to be less than buying something new but it's certainly not zero. If every neighbourhood has a swap shop where people could drop off what they didn't want and pick up what they did want! Crafters could dismantle the items that are too worn and save and sort the buttons. If this were organized by a jobs programme instead of a profit system it would be worth doing. As more and more jobs get automated there's still lots of work that needs doing that people don't make a profit from without exploiting people, and work that needs doing that doesn't get done. Wouldn't it be great to pull invasive lake weeds by hand instead of using herbicides? Cheerful volunteers do it sometimes and make a party of it but if a UBI programme is to get off the ground maybe it should be built on a 100 hours a month job programme that gets things done that aren't profitable but worth doing.
Indeed, so much important work, that no-one pays for. And the work that does get paid for, is being replaced by robots that don't need pay.
I love the amount of research that should have been done to put each video. Thumbs up to the planet A team
I thought about it, ordering from Shein, but it seemed pretty sketchy so I decided not to. Instead of just throwing something away, donate your clothes, either send it to thred up or goodwill so someone else can use it!
I buy all my kid's clothes from Shein because they grow so fast and it seems crazy buying a dress for €10 rather than €1 when they only wear it one season and then have grown out of it. Then I always donate it to goodwill and I feel that I haven't wasted any money when I give it away for free.
Goodwill also treats their workers like garbage
How about donating to a local consignment shop or charity instead?
It seems like a solid option for families on a budget with children that grow out of clothes quickly. Outside of that scenario, I don’t see why anyone would buy low quality clothes. Then again, companies like Burberry incinerate older clothes instead of liquidating them.
Agree, the quality is not worse than many other brands. I buy all my kid's clothes from Shein because they grow so fast and it seems crazy buying a dress for €10 rather than €1 when they only wear it one season and then have grown out of it. Then I always donate it to goodwill and I feel that I haven't wasted any money when I give it away for free.
why not buy used clothes instead? good will or other thrift stores?
Agreed, or maybe maternity or losing or gaining a bunch of weight quickly? Mostly I think social media has made fashion cycles have the lifespan of mayflies and people cannot afford to shop elsewhere even if they want to in order to not add to the suffering of people employed in the sweatshops used by fast fashion brands, the environmental issues associated with fast fashion, smaller creators designs being stolen by fast fashion brands, etc. Many people can afford to shop elsewhere but just don't want to pay more for the same thing. Many bigger brands do make their products in China in similar ways with cheap materials and just charge more
(even some well-known brands that used to be known for quality). Most fast fashion falls apart so quickly that it is not even worth the decreased price tag though tbh. There are so many issues with fast fashion and consumerism. The way we are marketed to based on creating an insecurity. The way some advertisers go beyond bodypositivity or self care being important and straight into you deserve everything right tnow for nothing all the time... telling us all that it is somehow empowering to behave like entitled spoiled brats. It's pure insanity. :(
@@sagasvensson8920Please don't they use toxic chemicals
@@gohardorgohome6693 Thrift stores are quite uncommon in some places (the US has lots of them, but not every country does). Where I live, which is a more rural area, there is only a small handful of thrift stores and most of them are really small and don't sell any children's or men's clothing and even the women's clothing is only in a style which is not really fashionable for people in the twenties. For children, there are flea markets, but only twice a year and even those aren't so big that you can guarantee to find a jacket or a pair of shoes that fits, nor are there enough clothes to buy all your shirts and pants there. And if you're a man, there is basically no option to buy clothes at thrift stores if you don't want to pay 20$ or so on driving to the shop. The only option are online thrift stores.
People buy way too much in general. I know so many people who say: I can't afford brands, but have 20 shirts and 40 skirts at home. No one wears everything in the closet. Save some money up for sustainable clothes or go thrifting. The majority of people have no excuse for buying from shein. There's are people who live in small towns and it harder but the most people have the chance to make better choices.
@Vicar Amelia I mean I'd rather have an iPhone which lasts me 4 years perfectly fine, than an Android which I need to buy every year as it is poor quality and goes bad way too quick.
things are also designed to last a very short amount of time! So you can spend MORE MONEY and throw away the old stuff. But dont worry there is still hope! I a a 13 year old and i see shein for what it really is!
Let me just propose a conspiracy theory: SHEIN is not a clothing company, but a fast dataset gathering and training for AI. The thing is, you can only so far in reducing costs since it is a clothing industry and any investor will know this is not a wise choise to jump onboard. So my theory is SHEIN's most valuable asset is not even its brand and social influence but the shear quantity of data it gathered from the customers and letting them training the AI to predict human behavior. I'll bet the fashion industry is already planning to get hold of this, or maybe it's them that is sponsoring this company in the shadow to begin with
I am personally buy a lot in Shein because of the Plus size category! In my country there are only a few and expensive and old fashioned stores for that and it feels like you came to buy for your grandmother! In Shein you have all you want , you feel sexy and trendy and it’s cheap. If you start to diet and loose weight, you don’t mind about new clothes again in Shein!’
My 14 year old daughter once made a Shein purchase. I didn't know at the time about this company. Just that all the kids buy from there. I showed her once a similar vlog exposing their business model and she almost burst into tears. That will have been her last ever Shein purchase I'm happy to say.
Its not her fault she didn’t know though
was she crying when over 1K workers in a Bangladesh sweatshop building collapsed? You should tell her to also not buy from H&M.
@@getstarted5080 your comment is based on your simplistic and incorrect assumption that all teenagers are buying lots of their clothes in H&M. Aggressive comments like yours are not helping in this discussion about positive changes being made in consumer choices.
@@Freida98 Mam, I'm sorry you feel that is aggressive and I am simply trying to reason with you. I feel that you owe your daughter the complete truth on the nature of H&M (and Ikea as well) on their culpability in this global debate about climate change. Please note that in this video there is a segment that mention that the factory contracted to make cloth for Shein don't start until they received order. To me that sounds like a more environmentally conscientious solution. Clearly AI and advanced algorithm helps with this made to order process.
I rarely see kids on the internet getting good parenting for once
I’m guilty of previously having shopped at shein despite having the means to use my money in better things. I would reason to myself that it’s cheaper, and I really needed the cute clothes to fit in. But you know what I realized? That the clothes I enjoy and actually wear a lot are the ones that I bought for a price that can account for the time and effort put into it. Being environmentally friendly doesn’t really change the price tag from my favourite pieces.
I don't come from a well off family that's why when i discovered Shein i was in joy, because the clothes were so cheap and they all looked nice or in style. But after seeing this, i won't ever buy a single thing from them. I'd rather go to thrift stores if i wanted cheap stuff.
But if i do not have thrift stores in my town?
@@sentinonloso3859 buy from online thrift stores/resellers! imo it's way better than contributing to fast fashion companies :) plus there's always lots of different brands and options for cheap. i personally use poshmark and it's worked great
@@sentinonloso3859 other sites like mercari have cheaper shipping too so thats another option, although i haven't used it before
to those saying they don't have enough money to buy expensive clothes, go to a goddamn thrift store. literally you live in berlin, were you have access to do many thrift stores where you can buy things even cheaper and better quality than on shein
Not sure how it is in Berlin, but in other big cities, the second hand stores that sell anything the least bit cool are expensive, the more affordable ones will have last year's fast fashion brands, and the cheapest ones have the stuff the former 2 wouldn't take. It's not an easy issue to fix but it is definitely a problem where consumers play a large part in it. So long as more and more young people think they have to keep up with the latest trends and constantly buying new stuff and throwing last year's out, this will keep going on. Unless the governments can intervene in some way since the fashion industry contributes a lot to climate change and environmental destruction.
@@the_letter_b Indeed, laws should step in to stop this. This is not the teenagers responsibility, literally.
Not everyone has your same options dude. Sorry but I don’t want to be the only 15 year old dressed like an old hag at my school
Exactly! And there are many online second-hand stores as well.
I don't have thrift stores in my country bruh