The Economic Impact of SHEIN in the United Kingdom
Quantifying SHEIN’s Economic Contribution and Support for local designers, artists, and businesses in the UK.
This report examines the economic impact of SHEIN in the United Kingdom and explores the support the company provides to UK-based designers, artists, and businesses to build and grow in the online fashion and lifestyle retail sector.
Founded over a decade ago, SHEIN now operates in over 150 countries and has a growing presence in the United Kingdom. With an expansive global reach, SHEIN makes an important contribution to the local economies in which it operates. This new research by Oxford Economics, produced in collaboration with SHEIN, quantifies the total economic impact of SHEIN in the United Kingdom.
In 2023, SHEIN contributed £589 million to the UK economy and supported 2,700 jobs across multiple sectors, including business services, transportation, and the wider wholesale and retail sectors. More than half of this economic impact was generated by SHEIN’s own retail and wholesale operations, with the rest driven by the economic activity supported among UK service providers and the wage spending of those employed.
The study also highlights SHEIN’s role in supporting UK designers, artists and businesses to build and grow in the online fashion and lifestyle retail sector. SHEIN fosters local talent through two initiatives in particular: SHEIN X and SHEIN Marketplace. A global survey of over 150 SHEIN X designers and artists shows that collaboration with SHEIN increased customer access and visibility while providing opportunities to leverage technology. Notably, three in ten SHEIN X designers and artists with other revenue streams reported that their presence on SHEIN helped them grow earnings on other platforms as well.
