Shein has taken Gen Z closets by storm in the past year. The fast-fashion giant, which has come under fire for many controversies including plagiarizing designs and selling Muslim prayer mats as “Greek carpets”, is now named the “most manipulative fast fashion brand” according to a study on dark patterns.
The study, which analysed more than 30 of the largest fast-fashion brands in the UK, was conducted by web design agency Rouge Media. It defined dark patterns as “design trickery” that encourages shoppers to “behave how [brands] want, often without [shoppers] even realizing.” Examples of these patterns are hidden costs, ads disguised as editorials, and confirmshaming – when “retailers make you feel bad, guilty, or like you’ll miss out”.
Shein is a similarly powerful force on social media, where it has over 250 million followers spread across its social media channels. The brand often works with famous influencers in order to keep its younger audience engaged.
The ranking comes as the brand’s biggest fans are criticized for encouraging overconsumption with the #sheinhaul trend, which sees people (mostly young women and girls) showing off their large orders from the company. At the time of writing, #sheinhaul has 3.7B views on TikTok.