Alongside the many celebrity-laden Super Bowl ads this year was another advertiser that purchased multiple spots throughout the big game. Splashy commercials for discount e-commerce company Temu promised viewers that they could “shop like a billionaire” when making purchases on the site.
The name Temu (pronounced teh-moo) may already be familiar to folks who spend a lot of time shopping online, where the retailer was 2023’s largest advertiser with Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram. Like fellow online discounter Shein (pronounced she-in), Temu has risen to prominence quickly in recent years. Although Shein remains primarily focused on a younger clientele, Temu is looking to broaden its base by targeting older shoppers in the United States as its parent company has in China.
“It’s not a coincidence that Temu is taking out Super Bowl ads and advertising on Facebook rather than Instagram,” says Amanda Lee McCarty, host of the slow-fashion podcast Clotheshorse, alluding to the relatively older makeup of Facebook users. “They know this customer well.” Want to know more about the sites before shopping at them? We’ve got answers to your questions below:
What’s it like to shop on Temu and Shein?
Shein specializes in “fast fashion” – that is, the ability to offer the latest fashion trends more quickly than most retailers. Temu has a similar strategy with more broad-based product offerings that range from dresses to drills. Both sites offer a “gamified” shopping experience, designed to make the shopping experience fun – and to get shoppers to buy as much as possible.
“There are a lot of little games with spinning wheels and things like that,” says Inès Durand, senior market insights manager at Similarweb. “That’s what will make it different than if you go on Amazon … they’re going to suggest you play around with a lot of features and try to make you excited when you get a credit, so you spend more.”
Since the products are coming directly from manufacturers in China, expect orders to take a week or more to arrive at your door, which could be an adjustment if you’re used to the two-day shipping that has become common among many American retailers.
In terms of quality, experts say to expect a level commensurate with the low prices that you’re paying. “Obviously, you get what you pay for,” says John Deighton, a professor at Harvard Business School, who focuses on digital and direct marketing.
In a statement, Temu said that its affordable prices are not a reflection on their quality and that the company employs “stringent quality control measures.” Shein pointed to a study that found its customers wear its products an average 10 times or more.
FAQs
While Shein and Temu seem similar — both are online shopping platforms that rely on their extensive manufacturing operations in China to mass produce ultra-cheap, trendy products at huge volumes and fast speeds — the two companies have different business models.
How does Temu and Shein affect the environment? ›
Environmental Impact
This leads to massive waste as products are quickly discarded and end up in landfills, incinerated or shipped to developing nations. Both Temu and Shein contribute to this problem by encouraging consumers to buy more than they need, without regard to the environmental cost.
Why are Temu and Shein so cheap? ›
Temu and Shein ship packages straight from Chinese warehouses on the cheap, allowing American consumers to buy fast fashion, electronics and other products for astonishingly low prices.
How much do Shein workers get paid? ›
Workers in Shein factories on average earn between 6,000 and 10,000 Chinese yuan per month, or about $831 to $1,385, according to a Tuesday report from human rights and environmental advocacy organization Public Eye.
What are the risks of Temu? ›
Temu is now the target of several class action lawsuits, one of them claiming that once the Temu app is downloaded, it has access to nearly everything on a user's phone. This lawsuit alleges that Temu uses malware and spyware to collect user data beyond what's necessary for an online shopping app.
Is Temu child labor? ›
The Third Party Code of Conduct mandates that anyone doing business with Temu must strictly comply with all regulatory standards and compliance requirements." "The use of forced, penal, or child labor is strictly prohibited.
Is it unethical to shop at Temu? ›
They share many of the environmentally and socially damaging practices that make Temu a fast fashion company. Both maintain shockingly low prices of items while selling vast amounts of items, at low quality, through the use of exploited or forced labor.
Why is Temu so cheap? ›
Stuff on Temu is so cheap for several factors. Firstly, most products are shipped from China where production material and labor costs are lower than in Western countries. Additionally, Temu connects buyers directly with the manufacturers and suppliers, eliminating multiple middlemen.
Why is Temu bad for the environment? ›
The company's operations, heavily reliant on fast fashion, contribute to substantial resource depletion and pollution. Annually, the fast fashion sector, which includes Temu, is responsible for producing approximately 92 million tons of waste and consuming nearly 79 trillion litres of water.
Is Temu junk product? ›
Yes, most of the products on Temu are real; you will receive them, and it takes about 10 days for them to reach your doorstep. However, any tech products you order on Temu are not name-brand unless there is a blue checkmark on their product listing.
This is not to say that Temu is a spotless site — recently, allegations of the company's breach of user data have arisen. Across the internet, there have been widespread claims of the app collecting user data. In addition, due to concern over data privacy, Temu faced a class action lawsuit filed in September 2023.
Which is better quality, Shein or Temu? ›
Though Shein has kept a check on the sellers, multiple issues have still been reported with clothes made of cheap fabric or polyester. Still, based on the reviews, Shein offers better quality at affordable pricing compared to Temu. The latter has claimed to offer dupes and knock-off products, too.
Does SHEIN use child labor, yes or no? ›
"We have zero tolerance for forced labor. We have zero tolerance for child labor," says Shein's Pernot-Day, adding that the company requires its manufacturers to comply with their local laws. Some of Shein's 5,000-some manufacturers are now in Brazil and Turkey, but most remain in China.
Why is SHEIN so cheap? ›
Outsourcing labor
One of the key ways that Shein and other fast-fashion brands keep prices low is by outsourcing manufacturing labor to cheaper markets, said Dana Thomas, a Paris-based fashion journalist and author of “Fashionopolis: The Price of Fast Fashion and the Future of Clothes.”
Who is the CEO of SHEIN? ›
And yet that's apparently the case for Shein's 40-year-old CEO Xu Yangtian, also known as Chris Xu or Sky Xu, who has largely avoided the public eye, including interviews and conferences. The secrecy surrounding him is being seen as unusual even in China.
Is Temu legit like Shein? ›
Temu and Shein are both well-known retail marketplaces that ship worldwide. As an established fashion brand, Shein has been the go-to choice for Gen Z groups. Temu, on the other hand, has gained increasing popularity among consumers due to its product variety and low prices.
Who is Temu owned by? ›
Temu is owned by PDD Holdings, the parent of Pinduoduo. The discount e-commerce marketplace has been growing rapidly around the world thanks, in part, to low prices.
Who is Shein affiliated with? ›
Shein is owned by parent company Nanjing Lingtian Information Technology, although the company's ownership is frequently branded a mystery. It remains a private company, with four major shareholders so far: JAFCO Asia, IDG Capital, Sequoia Capital China, and Tiger Global Management.
Does Temu sell your data? ›
This data can also be shared to third parties, inline with Temu's Privacy Policy, which acknowledges that under certain laws, this can be seen as “selling” your data: “Certain of these disclosures to third parties are known as 'sharing' or processing your personal information for targeted ads and but 'sharing' may be ...
