The fact that Shein and Temu are selling dirndls again just in time for Oktoberfest, well, whatever. Last year, Shein, an originally Chinese online retailer based in Singapore, even opened a temporary pop-up store in Munich for the first time during the beer-filled weeks. Why the dirndls are referred to as “Frenchy dress” or “Frenchy dirndl” on the Shein platform, however, remains the secret of the Chinese algorithm. Frenchy? Bavarian? It doesn’t matter. The main thing is that it sells. Thanks to data-based analyses, retailers know exactly what is in demand where. They usually meet this demand with cheap goods made somewhere in China, but occasionally with higher-priced products for special occasions such as Oktoberfest or Christmas.
The fact that goods from a world-famous German brand are now being sold on Shein in Germany in significant quantities is something else entirely. There are not many Adidas products available on Shein, but they are among the most successful classics of the sporting goods manufacturer from Herzogenaurach: Adilettes and the best-selling sneakers “Samba” in black. The Adilette is also called that on Shein, the Samba is offered as “Adidas Classic Boots”. It is relatively cheap, minus other discounts that the portal offers.
The sporting goods manufacturer is not very happy about this. “Adidas does not sell any products on the platforms itself and does not allow the resale of products on the platforms,” says a spokesperson. It is not a new phenomenon for Adidas, nor for Nike or Puma. The brand manufacturers do everything they can to prevent their shoes, which have been presented as particularly desirable and valuable at great expense and with well-known sports and pop stars as testimonials, from being sold off cheaply on Shein or Temu. Adidas does not sell them there itself; third-party retailers offer them. Preventing this is difficult or even impossible. Because by the time the responsible retailer is tracked down somewhere in the world and prosecuted, the goods have long since been sold. “In fact, there is little that manufacturers can do to prevent sales on Shein or Temu,” says Alexander Graf, e-commerce expert and founder of the software company Spryker.
The same game happened years ago with Amazon
Basically, what happened on Amazon a good ten years ago is repeating itself. Back then, too, the first brands appeared on the US platform’s marketplace. The manufacturers immediately tried to put a stop to this. They sent out entire teams to find out who the items that were suddenly available for purchase on the marketplace came from. At the same time, they ramped up their own online direct sales. Nike was right at the forefront. Recently, many have downsized their teams again and started to view the platforms more as partners, says Graf – unless they are called Shein or Temu.
Of course, big brands have no interest in showing their products there, says expert Graf. Because the portals are (at the moment) seen as sales channels for cheap goods. Being offered there can damage a brand’s image. “But most manufacturers don’t have a choice,” says Graf, “only a few brands have a purely selective sales model, often in the luxury or niche sectors. Most brands have to sell in bulk to be profitable. For that they need dealers.”
“In the long term, we will see almost all major brands there, just like on Amazon.”
The development at Birkenstock was exemplary. First, Birkenstock withdrew from Amazon with great media attention, but today the range there is huge. Adidas is already not the only prominent brand product on Shein. You can also find Ray-Ban glasses and Tissot watches there. Graf predicts: “In the long term, we will see almost all major brands there, just like on Amazon.”
The timing is remarkable and perhaps no coincidence. Shein did not respond to a request from the SZ. But the platform, like Temu, is currently under great political pressure. A few days ago, the USA announced that it wanted to restrict cheap imports from Shein and Temu. Punitive tariffs from Donald Trump’s time in office are to be extended to low-value consumer goods. In addition, the duty-free limit of 800 dollars, the so-called de minimis exception, is to be dropped. Up to this mark, packages from abroad are generally not checked or cleared through customs. In addition, Shein and Temu are suspected of misusing user data and stealing intellectual property by ignoring trademark rights.
The EU, for its part, is discussing cutting the duty-free limit of 150 euros by 2028 at the latest. Germany supports this. Federal Minister of Economics Robert Habeck (Greens) has presented an “E-Commerce Action Plan” on the subject. The USA and the EU justify the plans in a similar way: masses of products that are hazardous to health are being imported. The US consumer protection agency even spoke of “deadly baby and toddler products”, some of which are manufactured using forced labor in China.
The European toy industry is also warning against this. “Shein and Temu do not adhere to any of the environmental, social, safety or quality standards of the Western world, as there is no one to monitor or enforce them,” criticizes Florian Sieber, head of the largest German toy manufacturer, the Simba Dickie Group. “No complex laboratory tests are carried out by qualified testing centers. No customs duties are paid, as the shipments are almost exclusively under the duty-free limit of 150 euros and are sometimes incorrectly declared in order to remain duty-free. And I cannot imagine that all suppliers properly pay their taxes and duties, like we pay VAT or packaging disposal fees.” Ultimately, this is an unfair cost advantage over European manufacturers.
“Temu’s growth does not depend on the de minimis policy.”
In the EU, an estimated 65 percent of the approximately two billion packages are declared below their actual value each year. The abolition of the 150-euro exemption limit would also prevent tax fraud. Temu responded confidently to questions: “Temu’s growth does not depend on the de minimis policy,” said a spokesperson. “We are examining the new regulatory proposals and will continue to strive to offer consumers tangible added value.”
Alexander Graf doubts that the planned measures can have any real impact. However, the portals cannot currently be held liable under the planned rules and customs authorities are overwhelmed. “The platform model is so strong that it can work well even without the unfair advantages.”