Are you comfortable with this ?

But that doesn’t make it right Louella
I didn’t really ask if people bought from them but are you comfortable with it and if not what can we do ?
I buy 75% of my clothes from charity shops I ve not knowingly bought Temu or Shein except a couple of items when they first came out and I had no idea of the background of the workers
they were both very substandard one was full of what looked like tea stains over it the other really looked nothing like the pictures However some of the goods they make look lovely and very unique
I guess we need to buy less
We have a material (rag) bank near me it is constantly overflowing with good clothes that just need washing, the waste is terrible and it all goes off to clutter up other countries landfills

We really do need to think more about this and not just pass it off as someone else’s problem

I agree that we need to buy less. As I get older, I probably have enough clothes to last me forever. Another bonus of buying good quality in the first place.
I now prefer to take my DGCs clothes shopping as they are still growing.

My daughter worked in fashion and some of the clothes were made in China. However, visits were made and the firm were adamant about good working practices. One supplier was dropped when they failed to meet the standard of employee care.
The clothes were more expensive but were very well-made. Some years on, many of them are still being worn by DD, her sisters and her friends.
It is possible to buy from China without excessive exploitation of the workforce.

I remember Stacey Dooley featuring in a programme about sweatshops and child labour when she was still a teenager.

It was apparent then and may still true now, that high end and medium price designer brands were using sweatshops and far from caring about human welfare, they never even visited these factories. I hope this has changed but I have a
sneaky feeling that not all big brand labels are as caring as they should be.

No I would buy from them and no doubt when they have foreign buyers inspect their factories they show them what they want them to see. I wouldn't trust the Chinese government on anything. I think it's sickening how many of our goods are manufactured there sold by the likes of John Lewis.

What can we do when successive governments overlook the danger of forging even stronger relationships with China, it's pretty obvious they're all about world dominance. A lobbyist who has been working closely with RR is employed by a company that works for Shein and Reeves is allowing them a tax loophole,in that import duty is not charged on low value parcels it sends to customers from overseas, allowing them an unfair advantage. In a nutshell tax avoidance. The Chancellor has said that she wants better economic ties with China in our national interests allegedly! so no doubt we'll be getting even more of their shite goods, if that's at all possible coming our way. I believe she's brought up their questionable human rights records, and \I'm sure they've really listened to her on that

I meant to add, I think it's bad enough that we have our own, below the radar, sweat shops in this country, paying way below the minimum wage.

It’s very disturbing to hear that the production of the cotton used is alleged to involve forced labour by people of the Muslim Uyghur minority.

So no, for that reason alone I don’t feel comfortable about the Shein company, and would never buy from them.

No, not comfortable. No Temu or Shein for our family.

I tend to purchase cotton clothing, attempting to make sure it is not produced in China. Did fail once this autumn, more careful to labels since.

I make most of my own clothes and I am selective as to where the garments are made that I do actually buy. I have never bought from Shein and never will. I have seen the clothing that some friends have purchased and not been impressed with the standard and quality.

One lady even wanted me to 'fix' a faulty garment but I pointed out that my time would come at a cost and she would be better off sending it back. She was horrified to learn that she had to pay for the postage to China and she binned the dress in the end.

I agree would never buy from Shein, BooHoo or Primark.

I should have added that I would NOT feel comfortable in spending money with a company who employs its workers in the way described in the news article..... pressed post message too soon

I was listening to the news item this morning which said the typical buyer was 35 years old and would spend £100 a month on close. The reporter asserted that they weren't clothes bought by poorer people.

It must be about 8 years ago that a syndicate of us on FB tried our best to get the adverts banned.
We told the public the truth, we put photos up of the quality of some of the clothes. We listed the 260 companies ( at the time) who were involved with Shein
We were warned several times but kept going. Then we were banned. We got round that but were issued with another ban.
Now they are going to be listed on the Stock Exchange. And they will. Money talks.

Astitchintime

I make most of my own clothes and I am selective as to where the garments are made that I do actually buy. I have never bought from Shein and never will. I have seen the clothing that some friends have purchased and not been impressed with the standard and quality.

One lady even wanted me to 'fix' a faulty garment but I pointed out that my time would come at a cost and she would be better off sending it back. She was horrified to learn that she had to pay for the postage to China and she binned the dress in the end.

This is TEMU win. The returns couldn’t be simpler.

In this piece scroll down to * what happened in Cardiff*
This gentleman’s address was registered to 11,000 Chinese companies.
That’s just one address 😡 Can you imagine how many millions there are.

I do acknowledge, GG13 that there are other companies just as guilty when it comes to using forced, or underpaid, or slave labour, including some very big names. However, Shein and Temu are so blatant, not only in their use of cheap labour, but in undercutting other manufacturers and suppliers. Surely everyone can work out that if you can buy a dress for £5, then after profit, postage, materials, there isn't an awful lot left to pay the pour soul who made it.

Louella12

But so much of what we buy is from China. Look at your smartphone. Car. White goods. Medical equipment. Parts from China are everywhere.

Lots of complaints about how the workers are treated in many factories, not just Shein and Temu.

And in other parts of the world, let's not forget the horrendous conditions cobalt mining. For our clean batteries for electric cars.

Which is why I try to shop ethically, but it isn't always possible and at times a Chinese made item has to be bought. But if everyone tried to look for local or non-Chinese items, it would encourage more manufacturing in the UK and Western Europe.

Anyway for clothes most people have far too many anyway and fewer but better would probably leave many people better off. Neverlet perfection stop anyone aiming for the best possible.

“Better” doesn’t necessarily mean more ethical.

Delila

“Better” doesn’t necessarily mean more ethical.

It does if you do a bit of research before buying

It would be lovely to be able to buy clothes that were made in Britain. But they are few and far between, and very expensive. Probably the only thing I've got on that was made in Britain is the jumper I knitted myself from British wool.

I have never bought anything in Primark and would certainly not buy from Shein or Temu.

Can we trust that supermarket clothes are ethically produced? They are mostly made of man-made fibres, even though some are said to be made of recycled plastic bottles.

Try Oxfam clothes online! There are some great bagains to be had.

M0nica

Louella12

But so much of what we buy is from China. Look at your smartphone. Car. White goods. Medical equipment. Parts from China are everywhere.

Lots of complaints about how the workers are treated in many factories, not just Shein and Temu.

And in other parts of the world, let's not forget the horrendous conditions cobalt mining. For our clean batteries for electric cars.

Which is why I try to shop ethically, but it isn't always possible and at times a Chinese made item has to be bought. But if everyone tried to look for local or non-Chinese items, it would encourage more manufacturing in the UK and Western Europe.

Anyway for clothes most people have far too many anyway and fewer but better would probably leave many people better off. Neverlet perfection stop anyone aiming for the best possible.

I disagree that ‘at times a Chinese made item has to be bought’. At times, particularly when buying online, it is impossible to discern the country of origin. Apart from a situation in which it is impossible to know the country of origin despite all reasonable investigations, a Chinese item never has to be bought .

I wouldn't be comfortable buying from Temu, Shein or even Primark. I'd like to support UK manufactured clothing but surely nobody wants to support the Leicester sweatshop setups either? For anybody to do the 'second hand clothing' only route, then somebody else has to buy new in the first place, which is just 'passing the buck' in a way. It's a complex problem that will never be easy to solve.

I used to buy from Primark, but despite being tempted I've never bought from Shein or Temu. I think with them being online, I just want the added security of a reputable company, & this plus the ethics has made it easy to pass the bargain by.

Plus with clothes, they are so cheap nowadays relative to the price of food, no-one needs different outfit every week, it's pretty affordable to buy something 20% dearer.

Marks & Spencer used to boast that all their clothes were made in Britain. They haven't made that claim for a very long time now.

I don't think it is just China where these sweatshops using child labour exist.