Frida Rose Gaspar

As I stroll down the aisles of goodwill, brands flash past my eyes. Many of the clothes are from brands I have never even heard of, but I always find an array of Land’s End capri pants in the women’s section. But something else catches my eye, and the attention of my friend as well. I know this, because she says, “Why is there so much Shein here?” And she’s right. The more I pick apart the individual hangers, a black label with white lettering reading, “Shein”, is revealed. This seems to be a universal experience, as looking up “Shein Thrift Store” in the TikTok search bar brought up multiple results. So why is there so much of this specific brand on the racks at local thrift stores? 

Shein is one of the most expansive online retailers in the fast-fashion industry. While the company started with women’s fashion, they have since expanded everything from fashion to electronics. The cherry on top is the price. Shein prices are attractive because they are affordable. This makes videos featuring hundreds of dollars worth of Shein products popular among platforms like TikTok and YouTube. Isabella Grullón Paz writes about this in her New York Times article, ‘The Golden Age of Thrifting is Over’. She quotes Megan McSherry, a sustainable fashion educator, “Those hauls just encourage overconsumption… And there’s no way that all of those items are going to be constantly worn.” 

McSherry’s ideas are further confirmed when you take in the fact that other second-hand retailers like the website ThredUp, received a 186% increase in their clothing donations from the brand Shein in 2020. With the constant trend cycle within the fast-fashion industry, it feels impossible to keep up with the demand of consumers. Thrift stores become exhausted with the amount of donations they receive, and not all make it into consumers’ hands. Paz references author Adam Minter, who said only about 20% of the store’s inventory gets sold on the shopping floor at a marked-up price, and the rest are sold to wholesale markets or sent to landfills. 

That is why there is so much Shein at thrift stores nowadays. Multiple factors including trend cycles, consumer demand, and overconsumption all contribute to why Shein is slowly diluting the diversity of clothing that makes thrifting the fun and adventurous hobby that it can be. When people go to thrift stores, they are not going with the intention to find something that everyone else will have. It becomes a dilemma when you can purchase Shein at a store for the same price you would have online, minus the shipping. 

The next time you are at Goodwill or Salvation Army, and see something you think is cute on the hanger but turn out to be Shein, don’t be disgusted or turn away in shame. Get used to it. You will be seeing a lot more in the future if our society’s current consumer habits keep up.