Shein Links Up With Forever 21 To Take Clothing To Physical Retail

Photos 20043422 © Sean Pavone and 260895769 © Mkopka | Dreamstime.com

Two fast-fashion forces have struck an alliance to make one another more powerful.

On Thursday, Shein and Forever 21 announced that they have inked a deal to bring more click to brick-and-mortar stores, and more brick to click. The tie-in will also give the Chinese-founded, Singapore-based online commerce giant about one-third of shares in Sparc Group, Forever 21’s operator, while Sparc will acquire a small slice of Shein’s pie.

The partnership, first reported by the Wall Street Journal, will push Forever 21’s stock directly to Shein’s popular platform of 150 million users.

Notably, it will also bring the online fashion retailer’s wares right into Forever 21’s physical locations in the US, with the hope to trial Shein sales and returns in real-world contexts.

As formidable players in the fast-fashion space, both Forever 21 and Shein are frequently named in controversies often associated with the industry, like its mounting contribution to waste and plaguing infringements of artists’ copyrights. While both will benefit from one another’s expertise, their joining forces probably won’t help to ease such sentiments.

[via Associated Press and Reuters, cover photo 20043422 © Sean Pavone and 260895769 © Mkopka | Dreamstime.com]