Shein Accused of IP Infringement, Stolen Designs
The ultra-fast fashion brand Shein known for its “impossibly” low prices has experienced meteoric growth in the past several years, particularly among Gen Z.[1] In May 2021, it surpassed Amazon’s streak as the number-one most downloaded shopping app in the United States.[2] What started as a relatively unknown company based in China has become a behemoth, sparking controversy in recent years for its harsh labor practices, racially offensive merchandise, and, repeatedly, for its stolen designs.[3]
Shein’s business model is driven by big data. Through its “large-scale automated test and reorder” (“LATR”) model, Shein produces merchandise while simultaneously testing that merchandise’s performance through data collected by its internal management software.[4] Top-selling goods are automatically reordered to Shein’s manufacturing partners—a network of some six thousand Chinese clothing factories.[5] The system is remarkably efficient; Shein is able to analyze trends and respond by churning out new merchandise within a number of days.[6] It lists thousands of new items to its website each day.[7] One test buy compared Chinese-manufactured items, including one that was purchased from Shein, to imitations from AliExpress. The results suggested that “apparel factories in China are… extremely adept at mimicking one another and adapting to the same trends.”[8]
The dizzying speed at which Shein’s feedback software operates has led to numerous claims of intellectual property infringement by large and small brands alike. A number of fashion companies, including Dr. Martens’ owner AirWair International, Levi’s, and Ralph Lauren have brought trademark and copyright infringement lawsuits.[9] Most recently, skate/surf brand Stussy accused the fast fashion giant of counterfeiting its trademarks.[10]
Copyright law, in particular, is not very protective of fashion designs, only extending coverage to those creative elements that can be “separated [out]” from the garment.[11] Meanwhile, smaller indie designers often don’t have the resources to enforce the intellectual property rights they do have.[12]
Though claims of stolen fashion designs are nothing new for fast fashion brands, Shein’s case is notable for the sheer size and pace of its operations. However, as one blog post notes, “[g]iven the fact the company reported generating more than $10 billion in revenue in 2020 alone, it seems safe to say the company can afford to settle these claims and keep doing business as usual.”[13]
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