There’s a buzz in the air as young people line up for Shein’s Montreal retail pop-up.
“It’s cheaper,” said Diana Quentero, who lined up to shop. “I can find everything … If I want something for a special occasion, I go Shein.”
Global fast-fashion giant Shein is expanding, launching an online marketplace similar to Amazon. (Illustration by Andrew Nguyen)
The line on Thursday was hundreds of people long and snaked around the corner of an outdoor mall. Online fast-fashion giant Shein, founded in 2008, doesn’t have any brick and mortar stores other than a few in Asia. So a pop-up is novel for shoppers.
Shein, a Chinese company based in Singapore, has seen its popularity explode on social media for its $3 tops, $5 dresses and nearly endless webpages of styles. According to Business Insider, Shein has more than 74.7 million active shoppers, and in 2022, the company was worth $100 billion US.
Now, the company is expanding from selling its own branded apparel to become a global online marketplace to compete with some of the biggest online e-commerce brands. Its online marketplace will see third-party vendors sell everything from housewares to appliances, directly to the consumer, similar to Amazon.
It’s one of many companies moving into the marketplace business. This week, The Wall Street Journal reported that TikTok is also building an Amazon-like marketplace. And Temu, a Chinese owned e-commerce platform, launched in the U.S. in 2022 and in Canada this February.
WATCH | Shoppers line up for a Shein pop-up:
Montrealers line up for Shein retail pop-up
1 day ago
Duration 0:55
People lined up Thursday for a retail pop-up hosted by Shein in Montreal. The company’s popularity has exploded among young shoppers on social media for its $3 tops and $5 dresses.
But some say Shein needs to clean up its act first. The company has faced tough scrutiny over its environmental impact and its human rights track record, and an expansion could make things worse, say experts.
“The fashion industry is already complex enough. There are already enough problems for Shein to solve to improve,” said Sheng Lu, an expert in the global textile and apparel industry at the University of Delaware.
In its May press release, Shein said it’s expanding to meet consumer demand. Shein did not respond to CBC News’ request for an interview.
“Shein is committed to delivering the best shopping experience for customers,” Sky Xu, Chief Executive Officer, said in the release.
Shein has more than 74.7 million active shoppers, and in 2022, the company was worth $100 billion. (Yuichi Yamazaki/AFP/Getty Images)
A rival to Amazon?
Shein became the largest fast-fashion retailer in the U.S. in 2021, according to Ernest Analytics. And now, with its sights set on expanding, some experts say that looks to be just the beginning.
“I don’t think there’s any reason why another company couldn’t rival what Amazon is doing … It seems like Shein is trying to do that,” said Elizabeth Cline, a New York-based author and journalist who covers fast fashion and sustainability.
It’s already launched its online marketplace in Mexico, Brazil and the U.S., and plans to roll out in Europe later this year. There is no word yet on when the marketplace could roll out in Canada.
Shein’s ability to deliver on dirt-cheap prices will make a stiff competitor in the e-commerce space, said Cline.
“Amazon is known for speed and low price, but you can always go lower,” she said.
Shein’s already-established popularity could help propel its new marketplace, said Dave Xie, expert at Oliver Wyman consultancy focusing on China’s retail sector. Shein already has brand recognition, he said, and can charge merchants commission.
“It’s kind of easy money for the platforms to make, but only under the condition that as a platform you have a very big traffic base,” said Xie. “So basically I think that’s the strategy of lots of platforms, for example, Amazon.com.”
And it can lean on its ability to detect trends in the retail sector, allowing it to understand what will sell well, and what won’t, he added. He says the company has the ability to scrape data from social media and other websites to detect new trends.
“New design, new colour, new theme, even new fabrics are available and then designers from Shein will combine those design elements …to produce the newest product.”
Shein’s online marketplace will see third-party vendors sell everything from homewares to appliances. (Richard A. Brooks/AFP/Getty Images )
Pressure on supply chain
Xie says Shein is able to keep up with demand by using a “small order, quick response” model, which allows it to have a tight command of its supply chain, only mass producing the highest-selling items on its site.
“They’re just ordering very small batches of clothing and then if there’s demand for the product, they’ll scale it up,” Cline said.
But Cline says Shein’s business model creates pressure on its supply chain to make clothes for cheap, which ultimately causes factories to cut corners on environmental and human rights standards.
In 2021, Shein emitted about 6.3 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalents, according to The Business of Fashion. And a recent U.S. Congressional report raised concerns that the company had links to forced labour in its supply chain.
Last September, Shein committed to reducing its supply chain emissions by 25 per cent by 2030. In comparison, Zara recently announced its plans to cut emissions along its value chain by 50 per cent in 2030 and to achieve net zero by 2040.
WATCH | Shein PR campaign goes wrong:
Influencers on blast: how a Shein factory trip backfired | About That
1 month ago
Duration 6:18
A group of influencers has come under fire after attending a brand trip with Shein, one of the world’s largest fast-fashion makers, which has been accused of labour law violations and an outsized environmental footprint. Andrew Chang explains how this PR campaign went so wrong.
Cline questions how Shein’s newly announced sustainability plan will play into its new marketplace, and how far down the supply chain its sustainability initiatives will really go.
“There are concerns around how Shein creates this kind of culture which encourages consumers to keep purchasing cheap clothing and dump them,” Lu said.
Lu says amid all the scrutiny, Shein should take the opportunity to revisit its business model.
Ultimately, Cline says Shein presents a lot of different tensions.
“People are kind of grappling with that,” said Cline. “What does that mean that we live in this age of sustainable awareness and we’ve also somehow fed and created the world’s biggest, fastest, cheapest fast fashion company.”
TORONTO – Canada Goose Holdings Inc. says it has signed a deal that will result in the creation of its first eyewear collection.
The deal announced on Thursday by the Toronto-based luxury apparel company comes in the form of an exclusive, long-term global licensing agreement with Marchon Eyewear Inc.
The terms and value of the agreement were not disclosed, but Marchon produces eyewear for brands including Lacoste, Nike, Calvin Klein, Ferragamo, Longchamp and Zeiss.
Marchon plans to roll out both sunglasses and optical wear under the Canada Goose name next spring, starting in North America.
Canada Goose says the eyewear will be sold through optical retailers, department stores, Canada Goose shops and its website.
Canada Goose CEO Dani Reiss told The Canadian Press in August that he envisioned his company eventually expanding into eyewear and luggage.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
Almost seven years since news broke of an alleged conspiracy to fix the price of packaged bread across Canada, the saga isn’t over: the Competition Bureau continues to investigate the companies that may have been involved, and two class-action lawsuits continue to work their way through the courts.
Here’s a timeline of key events in the bread price-fixing case.
Oct. 31, 2017: The Competition Bureau says it’s investigating allegations of bread price-fixing and that it was granted search warrants in the case. Several grocers confirm they are co-operating in the probe.
Dec. 19, 2017: Loblaw and George Weston say they participated in an “industry-wide price-fixing arrangement” to raise the price of packaged bread. The companies say they have been co-operating in the Competition Bureau’s investigation since March 2015, when they self-reported to the bureau upon discovering anti-competitive behaviour, and are receiving immunity from prosecution. They announce they are offering $25 gift cards to customers amid the ongoing investigation into alleged bread price-fixing.
Jan. 31, 2018: In court documents, the Competition Bureau says at least $1.50 was added to the price of a loaf of bread between about 2001 and 2016.
Dec. 20, 2019: A class-action lawsuit in a Quebec court against multiple grocers and food companies is certified against a number of companies allegedly involved in bread price-fixing, including Loblaw, George Weston, Metro, Sobeys, Walmart Canada, Canada Bread and Giant Tiger (which have all denied involvement, except for Loblaw and George Weston, which later settled with the plaintiffs).
Dec. 31, 2021: A class-action lawsuit in an Ontario court covering all Canadian residents except those in Quebec who bought packaged bread from a company named in the suit is certified against roughly the same group of companies.
June 21, 2023: Bakery giant Canada Bread Co. is fined $50 million after pleading guilty to four counts of price-fixing under the Competition Act as part of the Competition Bureau’s ongoing investigation.
Oct. 25 2023: Canada Bread files a statement of defence in the Ontario class action denying participating in the alleged conspiracy and saying any anti-competitive behaviour it participated in was at the direction and to the benefit of its then-majority owner Maple Leaf Foods, which is not a defendant in the case (neither is its current owner Grupo Bimbo). Maple Leaf calls Canada Bread’s accusations “baseless.”
Dec. 20, 2023: Metro files new documents in the Ontario class action accusing Loblaw and its parent company George Weston of conspiring to implicate it in the alleged scheme, denying involvement. Sobeys has made a similar claim. The two companies deny the allegations.
July 25, 2024: Loblaw and George Weston say they agreed to pay a combined $500 million to settle both the Ontario and Quebec class-action lawsuits. Loblaw’s share of the settlement includes a $96-million credit for the gift cards it gave out years earlier.
Sept. 12, 2024: Canada Bread files new documents in Ontario court as part of the class action, claiming Maple Leaf used it as a “shield” to avoid liability in the alleged scheme. Maple Leaf was a majority shareholder of Canada Bread until 2014, and the company claims it’s liable for any price-fixing activity. Maple Leaf refutes the claims.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
Companies in this story: (TSX:L, TSX:MFI, TSX:MRU, TSX:EMP.A, TSX:WN)
TORONTO – TD Bank Group, which is mired in a money laundering scandal in the U.S., says chief executive Bharat Masrani will retire next year.
Masrani, who will retire officially on April 10, 2025, says the bank’s, “anti-money laundering challenges,” took place on his watch and he takes full responsibility.
The bank named Raymond Chun, TD’s group head, Canadian personal banking, as his successor.
As part of a transition plan, Chun will become chief operating officer on Nov. 1 before taking over the top job when Masrani steps down at the bank’s annual meeting next year.
TD also announced that Riaz Ahmed, group head, wholesale banking and president and CEO of TD Securities, will retire at the end of January 2025.
TD has taken billions in charges related to ongoing U.S. investigations into the failure of its anti-money laundering program.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
