I admit I know very little about fashion. Even less about Gen-Zers' taste.
But as a marketing and ecommerce professional, I couldn't ignore the story of SHEIN, pronounced "She-in".
SHEIN is the web-only "enfant prodigue" that has taken the fast-fashion industry by storm. It's a Chinese giant valued at $100bn, but it doesn't look or feel Chinese. In fact, it doesn't even market to China!
With the US being its main market, revenue grew from around $3bn in 2019 to an estimated $20bn in 2021. Not bad!
Its market share surpassed H&M and Zara's combined, likely making it the largest fast-fashion retailer in the US. All of this, while being still relatively unknown to over 30s like me.
So what are the ingredients of its success?
1️⃣ A disruptive supplychain model.
2️⃣ Smart use of digital marketing and social influencers.
3️⃣ AI-driven design choices.
4️⃣ Tax and regulation loopholes, as well as avoidance of geopolitical controversies.
However, SHEIN now faces several challenges. Find out more in my next post!
sources: Economist, Bloomberg, Fortune, Ben Evans' blog