Is Shein Legit or a Scam? Can You Trust This Fast Fashion Brand With Your Orders?

You would have probably heard of Shein hauls and seen them on your social media feed. Most of the creators talk about how cheap it is and how it is best for fast fashion.

But, let’s be honest here: fast fashion has never been safe, not for us and the environment. This leads us to question, is Shein legit or safe enough to buy stuff from?

If you want answers to your queries, scroll through this post as I tell you everything about Shein, including its risks, legality, and tips to use it safely.

Is shein legit???

— Pooh'Baby 👑🤴🏾 (@NikaP0oh) October 18, 2023

What is Shein?

So basically, SHEIN is an online marketplace where you can buy products at lower prices. Though it mainly focuses on women’s clothing, you can easily find men’s clothes, accessories, home goods, makeup, bags, and other stuff here. 

Talking about its origin, Shein was founded in 2008 by a Chinese-American entrepreneur, Chris Xu, under the name ZZKKO. In the beginning, they only sold wedding dresses, but later they started offering more trendy things, which eventually became their turning point.

Since then, it has become a known fast-fashion brand that especially caters to middle-class people.

Why is Shein so Popular?

Shein has now become a popular fast-fashion brand with so many people praising it. But how did it gain so much fame? 

It was because of a number of reasons.

• It offers products at cheaper rates than what you would see in the local markets.

• It has frequent flash sales and promotions that make the already cheap products more appealing. Those promos are made limited so the users feel the urge to grab them before they are gone.

• Since the app updates stock frequently, you would never feel behind the fashion trends.

• It apparently delivers to over 220 countries and regions.

Is Shein Legit or a Scam?

So, let’s move on to our main question: Is Shein legit?

Yes, Shein is a legitimate site where millions of people shop daily. It’s a budget-friendly shopping app with its roots in China. It has countless trendy products, allows safe transactions, and the delivery is mostly smooth. 

On Scamadviser, Shein has a trust score of 100/100. While on Trustpilot, it has a 4.1/⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ rating and over 260K reviews from customers. So, it would be safe to assume that the app is reliable.

All in all, it looks pretty safe to use.

Despite all that, Shein is involved in multiple controversies. It has been criticized for promoting fast fashion, stealing other’s designs and inventions, and its unfair labor practices.

Is it Safe to Order From Shein?

Generally, it’s safe to shop from Shein. It is a legit place that offers you products at a cheaper rate. However, there are some things you must take note of.

• Data Privacy Concerns
  The app collects a lot of personal information, though most of it is to improve your experience. So, you must be careful of the permissions you share with the app.

• Quality Issues
  Since it produces stuff at such a fast rate, the quality is often hit or miss. So, if you are lucky, you might get a great deal; if not, you might get a faulty product that won’t last long.

• Counterfeit Risks
  Shein delivers products from third-party vendors, and thus, the stuff people receive often turns out to be a counterfeit or a pure knockoff of popular brands. So, if you are buying an expensive branded product, be careful!

• Security and Payment
  The site claims that it uses SSL encryption to keep your payments safe. However, it is advised that you do not save your financial details on the site and rather use apps like Google Pay, PayPal, or Apple Pay.

Shein Reviews: Feedback From Customers

From what I’ve noticed during my research, most of the people using Shein were satisfied with their purchases and got a good value for the price.

While the rest shared their experience of being scammed and receiving counterfeit products. Most users were saying that even after waiting for ages, they didn’t receive their order. The app just canceled their orders and gave them a refund.

Many users have revealed that the app’s customer service is disappointing since they can’t reach out to the agents when an issue arises.

Why is Shein so Cheap?

Shein is popular for its low prices, no matter if you are buying from a known brand or a local seller. But why is that so? It’s because Shein:

• Outsources Labor: Shein mainly outsources labor from countries where wages for labor are lower. Since they pay less to the workers, they are able to charge less for the products.

• Uses Less Expensive Materials: It mass-produces the products that seem to do well using cheap materials, which is why the products are cheaper here.

• Has No Physical Stores: Since apps like TikTok Shop and Shein have no physical stores, they don’t have to worry about paying rent, operational costs, etc. It allows them to cut down on the prices.

• Ships Directly to Customers: It ships the products directly to customers and reduces the costs of arranging a middleman. This way, they can lower their shipping expenses and offer cheap stuff.

• Uses Influencer Marketing: Shein mainly spends money on influencers and uses them as a marketing opportunity since it’s affordable and works most of the time.

Is Shein Safe for Kids?

No, it’s not okay for kids to use Shein. 

Most of the clothes on the app have high levels of toxic chemicals that can be harmful to little kids.

One example of that is the study back in 2021 that found a high amount of lead in children’s clothing. They revealed that one jacket had about 20 times the recommended level of lead.

Since kids don’t care much about the product description and all, they might end up buying products that are harmful to their health. So, it’s better if you keep them away from the app.

However, if you are letting them use the app, make sure they are under your supervision. Or better, you can just install parental controls on their device.

Controversies Around Shein: What Users Must Know About Shein?

If you are planning to buy from Shein, you must learn about the various controversies it has been involved in. It will help you get an idea of what you are stepping into.

Shein has been receiving major criticism because of its unfair labor practices. Reports say that it has been using factories that overwork their workers and force them to work 75 hours a week with little wages.

After this accusation, Shein said it would work on it, but CNN has revealed the workers’ situations are still the same.

This top fast-fashion brand has been pumping out fashionable products in no time. But are Shein products disposable? Nope…

Most of their clothes are made from synthetic fibers, such as polyester, which is cheap to make but hard to dispose of. 

This leads to plastic pollution and promotes a culture where people buy more than what they need just because they need to be in touch with the trends.

Intellectual property rights are the rights that belong to the creator and let them use their works as they desire for a set period. However, Shein has been violating these rights for a long time.

Many small creators and business owners have accused Shein of copying their designs and selling them without their permission. Because of that, three designers have also filed a lawsuit against the brand.

People like Temu and Shein because of their quick mass production and cheap rates. However, it’s a mixed blessing. 

Since these brands pay special attention to quantity rather than quality, the stuff you get is mainly of cheap quality and can only be used a few times. Because of that, people have been raising concerns over the piled-up waste and its potential risk to nature.

How Can You Shop Safely on Shein?

There’s nothing wrong with using Shein as long as you are careful with your purchases. If you want more safety while buying things from the app, I’ve got some tips for you.

1. Check Reviews and Ratings: Before you go ahead and make any wrong purchases, make sure to take a look at the product reviews and seller ratings. This will help you know what the past users think of the product and the seller.

2. Choose Secure Payment Methods: When you are making payments, make sure to use methods like PayPal, Apple Pay, or Google Pay. These can help you get a middleman who looks over the safety of transactions.

3. Check Out the Product Description: Shein has been pretty infamous for delivering products that are far from what is mentioned in the product description. So I advise you to take a second look at the product images, size, etc.

4. Be Careful of Too Good Deals: If the app is offering branded products at the local price or at a very cheap rate, be careful. These products are often knockoffs and faulty products.

5. Understand the Return Policy: It’s better if you familiarize yourself with the return and refund policy. So, the next time you receive a product that is below your expectations, you can make use of the policy.

6. Don’t Click on Pop-ups: Shein has so many pop-ups that I spent most of my time getting rid of them instead of shopping. You can’t trust these ads since most of them are from third parties and are there to collect your data.

7. Be Careful of Fake Shein Websites: Because of the popularity of the app, many similar apps with similar layouts have appeared on the internet. However, those clone apps are not safe and are just made with the sole intent to scam you.

Wrapping Up!

This was all for the query, ‘Is Shein legit?’

All in all, you and your family can use Shein since it’s legitimate and generally safe. However, looking at the ongoing controversies around the app, it’s better to be cautious while making purchases on the app.

It doesn’t cost much to be careful, right?