SHEIN is a fast-fashion giant with runaway emissions—26.2 million tonnes CO₂e in 2024, up 23% year-on-year and 175% since 2021. Supply chain transparency is near-zero, renewable energy relies on unbundled certificates, and regulatory fines for greenwashing in Italy and France expose systematic misleading claims. SBTi-validated targets are undermined by continued growth-coupled emissions surge.
Same formula for every company. No curve. No private weighting.
SINK = (0.3 × Base + 0.7 × Performance) × ScaleStrongest on Carbon Footprint — Operations and Energy Source (5/10, 4/10). Weakest on Controversies & Red Flags and Emissions Trajectory (0/10, 0/10).
12 sources used in this assessment. All publicly available. Each row shows which rubric questions it informed.
9 of 12 sources are third-party verified or public record.
“Scope 1 fossil fuel combustion emissions increased by 94.3%... Scope 2 market-based and location-based emissions increased by 3.5% and 32.9%”
“In 2024, the data were fully externally audited for the first time and verified by Bureau Veritas.”
“SHEIN does not publicly report its energy use for its own operations, or a breakdown of its suppliers' renewable energy use”
“Supply chain emissions represented the largest share of the company's emissions at 11,201,419 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (mtCO2e)”
“about 51% of our directly sourced printed fabrics were produced using Digital Thermal Transfer Printing... saving 550,000 cubic metres of water”
“76% of the electricity purchased for our own operations was derived from renewable sources, up from 72% in 2023. This includes 170,200 MWh from EACs.”
“phthalates and the water- and dirt-repellent 'forever chemical' PFAS were detected in Shein products”
“fast-fashion giant Shein, which earned a 2.5/100 score, increased its absolute emissions by nearly 50% in just one year”
“Italy's competition authority hit Shein with a €1 million penalty, following a much larger €40 million fine in France”
“Shein has put in place a powerful and well-structured influence strategy involving the recruitment of former political decision-makers”
“It is the only company in the research to have not disclosed its environmental footprint and supply chain data to the CDP.”
“We are CanopyStyle and Pack4Good signatories, collaborating with Canopy to address the fashion industry's role in deforestation”
If you believe a source has been misread or a newer version exists, submit a challenge.
Among the 17 major apparel (fast fashion) brands we've scored, SHEIN sits 14th of 17.
Score history begins 8 February 2026.
As SHEIN's score updates, the trajectory will appear here.
We're backfilling historical scores for FTSE 100 and S&P 100 companies over the coming weeks.
Every challenge is published. We'd rather be corrected than wrong — that's the whole point.
No challenges submitted yet. If you have evidence that contradicts this score, you can challenge any question above — cite a public source and we'll review it.
SHEIN is a Chinese-founded, Singapore-registered ultra-fast-fashion retailer operating an app-based business model with global direct-to-consumer logistics. Known for high-velocity trend replication, low-cost manufacturing, and vertically integrated supply chains across ~7,000 suppliers, primarily in China. Headquartered in Singapore.
Ultra-fast-fashion competitor with identical transparency and supply chain opacity concerns
View breakdown →Traditional fast-fashion rival with higher ESG disclosure and slower emissions growth trajectory
View breakdown →Peer fast-fashion retailer with SBTi targets; demonstrates comparative supply chain governance gaps
View breakdown →Online fast-fashion brand with prior greenwashing allegations and supply chain transparency issues
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