SHEIN receives a €1 million fine: Antitrust sanctions misleading environmental claims

Roma – The Italian Competition Authority (AGCM) has imposed a fine of 1 million euros on Infinite Styles Services Co. Ltd, which manages the online activities of the Chinese fashion giant SHEIN in Europe, for having spread misleading and omitted environmental information in the promotion of its products. clothing.

At the heart of the Antitrust measure are a series of "green claims" – i.e., environmental declarations – conveyed through the website it.shein.com and other informational or promotional web pages.

According to the AGCM, these messages were vague, generic, or overly emphasized in some cases, and misleading or partial in others.

The sections in focus: #SheinTheKnow, evoluShein and Social Responsibility
In particular, the Authority's spotlight focused on the sections #SheinTheKnow, “evoluShein by Design,” and “Social Responsibility,” in which the company declared it adopts sustainable practices and uses recyclable materials.

Claims about “circular design” or product recyclability were deemed false or otherwise confusing, potentially misleading consumers about the true environmental impact of the company and its products.

The “evoluShein by Design” line, for example, was presented as sustainable thanks to the use of “green” fibers, but without clearly specifying what concrete benefits it brings to the environment, nor indicating that this collection represents a marginal portion of SHEIN's total production.

According to the Authority, the messages disseminated are such as to lead consumers to mistakenly believe that evoluShein garments are entirely recyclable and made exclusively from eco-sustainable materials, a claim that is not supported by the facts, given the mixed composition of the fibers used and the current inefficiency of recycling systems.

Climate promises? "Generic, vague, and contradicted by the facts."

Announcements regarding greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets were also criticized as lacking credibility and substance. SHEIN had declared its intention to reduce its emissions by 25% by 2030 and to eliminate them by 2050. However, the AGCM emphasizes that actual data shows an increase in emissions in the two-year period 2023-2024, effectively contradicting the promises made to customers.

The context: an even stronger duty of transparency

In justifying the fine, the Antitrust Authority highlighted the particular duty of diligence that SHEIN has as a leading operator in the "fast fashion" sector, a sector characterized by production practices with a very high environmental impact and "disposable" consumption.

The risk, according to the AGCM, is that SHEIN's environmental communication campaigns fuel a greenwashing phenomenon, masking a polluting and unsustainable production reality with sustainable rhetoric.

The measure confirms the Authority's hard line against unfair practices in environmental marketing, at a time when consumers' environmental awareness is growing and is a powerful driver of purchasing decisions.