24 December 2024, Mumbai
Four and half years after the Indian government banned it, Reliance Retail plans to launch Chinese fast fashion label Shein in the country starting with its fashion and lifestyle platform Ajio.
The Indian government had banned the Shein app in June 2020 following escalation of India-China border conflict. Shein was among the over 50 Chinese apps banned then by the ministry of electronics and information technology (MeitY).
A global fashion major, Singapore-based Shein will compete directly with Tata Group's value fashion chain Zudio and Flipkart-owned Myntra in India in the fast fashion, affordable space. Reliance Retail Ventures had signed a partnership with Shein last year to sell its fast fashion range in India on its platforms.
Piyush Goyal, Minister of Commerce and Industry, says, Reliance Retail will host an indigenous retail platform on infrastructure in India with Shein having no access to, or rights over, such data.
According to an October report by Reuters citing data by The Information, Shein's revenue growth slowed to 23 per cent in H1, FY24 from 40 per cent in the previous year, ahead of a stock market listing in London.
As per a report by consulting firm Redseer Strategy Consultants, the Indian fast fashion market is expected to cross $50 billion in sales by FY31. Indian fast fashion would make up for 25-30 per cent of overall fashion retail by FY31 in the Indian market.
However, the market is flooded with hundreds of unorganised players competing for market share. Reliance Retail Ventures has signed a technology agreement with Roadget Business Pte to develop an indigenous ecommerce retail platform, Goyal adds. The platform intends to create a network of local manufacturers and suppliers to manufacture and sell products under the brand name Shein, he further states.
