I’ve spent over four years at McMaster and I would like to say that with each passing year, my fashion sense has evolved a little bit. Like many others, I entered university as a fresh-faced 18-year old with absolutely no understanding of colour theory, my personal aesthetic or even an established wardrobe.
Fast forward a few years as a 5th year undergraduate student, I now spend a little bit more time making sure my earrings match the vibe of my outfit and have also swapped out my Puma backpack from Costco for my ‘Vintage Large Capacity Soft Solid Color Shoulder Bag for Women, Versatile Crossbody Bag Handle Women Hobo Shoulder Purse Big Capacity Sling Crossbody Handbag Casual Work Bag, Simple Retro Inspired Bag’ in the wonderful shade of Coffee Brown. Pause. Now read it again. Yes, that is the actual name of my bag and I personally believe this bag spices up every outfit that I wear.
Without fail, every time I go to campus, I get at least one compliment referring to my bag followed by a question that has now carved a hole so deep in my stomach, I’m considering taking ulcer medication: “Where is it from?” This is not a very difficult question to answer, but I have grown ashamed of my bag’s origin over time. Earlier this summer, I decided to treat myself like most 20-something girls do–I ordered countless items on Shein. As excited as I was to receive my package in the mail, it wasn’t a few days after my order went through that I found out about Shein’s troubling history.
If you weren’t previously aware, Shein has been the topic of quite controversial conversations, mainly involving the concept of fast fashion. According to Synthetics Anonymous 2.0, a report on fashion sustainability, Shein’s business model is unsustainable in many ways. Including a staggering emission of 6.3 million tons of carbon dioxide a year, Shein’s biggest controversy is the treatment of its workers. A documentary by U.K.’s Channel 4 highlighted that Shein workers worked 75-hour shifts on a weekly basis with extremely limited time off. They work in unsafe conditions to make your bikinis, your dresses, and even my bag. These conditions are due to the lack of safety protocols, involving windows or emergency exits. Channel 4’s documentary Inside the Shein Machine, sent undercover cameras inside to film factory workers. They found the workers forced to pull 17-hour shifts, making hundreds of clothing items per day. In one particular factory, the workers made a daily base salary of $20, which would then be docked by a whopping $14 if any of the garments had any mistakes.
Eventually, Shein admitted to their breaches of labour laws saying, “We know we have a responsibility to safeguard the welfare of workers in our supply chain. In light of the recent report in the news, we launched an investigation into the claim that 2 of our suppliers had unacceptable working conditions at their facilities.”
Well, that’s great! Right? Going back to my bag, I feel conflicted about whether or not I should keep it. What about the other hundreds of items I’ve ordered off the Shein website over the years? What about the hard work that went into making everything that I use? These are the types of questions that run through my head.
I haven’t made a Shein purchase since then but I’ve concluded that the best way to respond to someone every time they ask me where my bag is from is to tell them, “It’s from Shein, but I’m working on trying to shop sustainably”. It might not be an immediate solution but I feel content in the fact that I am trying to be more mindful about my purchasing choices. Nowadays, I make a genuine effort to go thrifting more and to shop vintage. I know I am not a bad person for shopping online and falling victim to fast fashion because it is all I can afford, but the first step to any problem is to identify where I’m going wrong and what I can do better – I can only hope that I am not alone in this mindset.