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HomeBlogE-commerceSHEIN Reaches the Top: Still Growing Strong in the Global Fashion Market

SHEIN Reaches the Top: Still Growing Strong in the Global Fashion Market

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Recently, data from Similarweb revealed that SHEIN has become the most visited fashion and apparel brand worldwide in September 2024, as well as in the third quarter of the year. With a global traffic share of 2.68% in Q3, SHEIN outpaced industry giants like Nike, H&M, and Zara, which ranked second to fourth, respectively.

In addition, a report from market analysis firm data.ai, published earlier this year, shows that SHEIN surpassed other e-commerce platforms to claim the top spot for global shopping app downloads in 2023. This marks the second consecutive year that SHEIN has taken the lead in app downloads, following its first-place finish in 2022. Across key markets, SHEIN continues to rank as one of the most popular fashion brands and shopping websites.

Industry experts attribute SHEIN’s rapid rise to the high efficiency and cost-effectiveness of its flexible supply chain. But what other strategies has SHEIN leveraged to fuel its success?

SHEIN: The Leading Global Fashion Brand by Traffic

SHEIN's meteoric rise in the fashion industry has positioned it as a disruptor in the market. In just a decade, the brand has revolutionized traditional apparel brands and fashion retailers in major global markets, quickly becoming a favorite among consumers.

According to Similarweb, SHEIN captured 2.66% of global web traffic in September 2024, surpassing other top fashion brands to claim the #1 spot. By the end of Q3 2024, SHEIN’s traffic share increased slightly to 2.68%. Alongside global heavyweights like H&M, Zara, and Uniqlo, SHEIN remains one of the top ten most visited fashion brands globally, with H&M and Zara ranking third and fourth, and Uniqlo ranking sixth.

Beyond traffic numbers, data also shows that SHEIN’s user engagement and conversion rates continue to grow. A report from Earnest Credit Card revealed that the number of users making purchases on SHEIN in August 2024 increased by approximately 40% compared to January, outpacing other top global e-commerce platforms.

SHEIN's success is also evident in Europe, where it has become the second-largest fashion brand in France. Experts predict that SHEIN will surpass Zara in sales in the French market by the end of 2024. The brand is also making significant strides in Germany and other European markets. According to GlobalData's "2028 German Apparel Market Report," SHEIN became the fourth-largest fashion brand in Germany in 2023 and is projected to rise further in 2024. Additionally, SHEIN is the third-largest online fashion retailer in the U.S., enjoying high popularity in many states.

This global success is largely attributed to SHEIN's digital supply chain revolution, which enables efficient on-demand production. Over the past decade, SHEIN has empowered suppliers with technological innovations, enabling them to upgrade their operations and share tools for achieving a flexible supply chain model that benefits both upstream and downstream partners.

Professor Chen Jin from the University of International Business and Economics states, “Overseas businesses are increasingly focusing on technological innovation and brand development. The key to improving efficiency and promoting high-quality economic growth lies in the application of advanced technologies. Flexible supply chains play a critical role in establishing new, high-quality production capacities and brand strength for international expansion.”

SHEIN’s deep commitment to improving the supply chain has allowed it to offer vendors a one-stop solution that includes design, fabric selection, production scheduling, and trend forecasting. This innovative model has provided SHEIN with a significant cost advantage. Meanwhile, on the marketing side, SHEIN has excelled in long-term brand building, particularly through social media and e-commerce operations. Its ability to match fashion-forward products with accurate market demand has helped it quickly gain favor among consumers in various global markets.

These advantages make SHEIN a pioneer in the international market, but these alone are not enough to explain its success.

SHEIN’s Platform Model: Expanding and Deepening Its Reach

From the early stages of its international expansion, SHEIN recognized the potential of its digital supply chain, user insights, and traffic management capabilities. These strategic elements helped elevate the brand, allowing it to break through its initial growth ceiling.

With its own brand establishing a broad global retail network, SHEIN has continued to evolve. Since 2023, the company has introduced more third-party merchants and brands to its platform, creating a unique “Own Brand + Platform” dual-engine business model.

In this platform model, SHEIN offers two types of collaboration: independent operations and managed operations. For sellers with experience in independent operations, SHEIN offers flexibility, giving them control over product selection, listings, marketing strategies, sales, inventory, and logistics. In return, SHEIN supports sellers with platform resources, brand-building assistance, and marketing tools, helping them grow their brand presence and recognition.

By joining SHEIN’s platform, third-party brands and sellers can reach customers in over 150 countries. They can also gain real-time market insights through SHEIN's professional resources, enabling them to adopt on-demand production and flexible supply chain models. By leveraging SHEIN’s global marketing campaigns and social media outreach, sellers can boost product visibility and brand exposure.

Since SHEIN began expanding its platform, sellers from countries like China, the U.S., Brazil, and Mexico have joined the platform. In this model, SHEIN’s flexible supply chain and demand-driven production are empowering an increasing number of markets worldwide.

In China, over 300 cities now have sellers operating on SHEIN’s platform. Thanks to China's well-established manufacturing infrastructure and supply chain system, domestic brands and sellers are using platforms like SHEIN to bring high-quality Chinese products and brands to international markets.

Sellers note that SHEIN customers tend to be younger and more fashion-conscious than those on traditional e-commerce platforms. One seller shared, “This presents a challenge for us as we need to meet market demand more precisely, but it also helps our business attract younger consumers and make our brand more appealing.”

Building a “fashion” and “style” brand image with its own products, SHEIN is now expanding its business into new categories such as home goods, accessories, 3C products (consumer electronics), and more. This creates a diversified cross-border e-commerce platform. From this perspective, SHEIN’s platform model offers significant opportunities for both the platform and its brands in global markets.

The Semi-Managed Model: Empowering Sellers for Greater Localization

As SHEIN continues to expand into 2024, it is accelerating its localization efforts in international markets, particularly in response to increasing competition from global e-commerce giants and a complex trade environment.

In June of this year, SHEIN launched its semi-managed model in the U.S., explaining that this model is an essential part of its platform strategy. It lies between fully managed and self-operated models, offering sellers greater flexibility. Under this model, sellers are responsible for local inventory, fulfillment, and product listings, while SHEIN provides operational support, traffic promotion, and pricing guidance. The goal of this semi-managed model is to attract merchants with local stock and fulfillment capabilities, further enriching the platform's product offerings and enhancing user experience.

After the U.S. launch, SHEIN expanded the semi-managed model to five European countries in August, assisting Chinese sellers in Germany, the U.K., France, Italy, and Spain with their global expansion. In Europe’s dynamic e-commerce market, fashion, consumer electronics, home goods, DIY products, and personal care categories are the most popular among online shoppers, which aligns with SHEIN's focus areas.

Expanding geographically in the U.S. and Europe not only broadens the reach of products but also tests sellers' ability to adapt to diverse market demands, preferences, and regulatory requirements. Cross-border e-commerce platforms like SHEIN are crucial in helping businesses navigate marketing, warehousing, fulfillment, and payment processes, making professionalized international expansion an essential path to gaining a competitive edge.

After just three months of the semi-managed model's launch, thousands of shops have begun operating, with many sellers experiencing significant increases in both sales and profits. A shoe store, for example, reached nearly $1 million in sales within two months of joining, while another seller saw a 2-3x sales increase in the same period. Sellers are also speeding up product launches, preparing for cross-border shopping promotions in the latter half of the year with a more diverse range of products and better services to capitalize on peak season sales.

Recent market research reports predict that the global e-commerce market will grow by 25.1% from 2022 to 2028, reaching a market size of $3.04 trillion by 2028. Whether expanding into emerging markets, experimenting with new business models, or focusing on specialized operations, Chinese businesses continue to make strides in the international market. By leveraging the resources, standardized management, and integrated support of cross-border e-commerce platforms like SHEIN, international expansion has become the standard for more and more businesses.

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