The controversial company with cheap goods from China has secured prominent support ahead of a possible IPO in London.
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The discount retailer Shein has hired a former top official from the European Union as a consultant: Long-time EU Commissioner Günther Oettinger confirmed to Capital when asked that he was advising the company. “We have a consulting contract with Shein,” said Oettinger. The news agency had previously reported on the personnel change. The former CDU official emphasized that he was not an employee of Shein. “I am not employed and therefore not an employee of the company, I am a freelance consultant,” Oettinger told Capital.
Shein is planning an IPO in London, but is controversial in this country, the EU and the USA. The company is putting local online retailers under pressure with its extremely cheap prices. The company, which was founded in China in 2008 and is now based in Singapore, is suspected of using cotton from the Chinese Uighur forced labor area to produce its clothing. Shein has always denied this. In addition, several designers have sued the company because it allegedly produced counterfeits of their models. There have also been reports of possible trademark infringements, with complaints from Levi Strauss and Ralph Lauren, among others.
The company also received criticism for its practice of shipping goods directly from China to foreign customers. This allows Shein to avoid import duties, which is why the EU now wants to counteract this: Brussels is considering imposing an import duty on cheap goods from Shein and Temu, thereby abolishing the limit for duty-free goods. It is currently 150 euros. When asked about possible EU tariffs, Oettinger said: “Shein is willing to accept the rules in the EU.”
Oettinger: “I am not a lobbyist”
Oettinger was Prime Minister of Baden-Württemberg from 2005 to 2010. In 2010 he moved to Brussels, where he was Commissioner for Energy, later for Digital Economy and Society and then for the EU budget and human resources. He was also Vice President of the European Commission for a short time in 2014. He is now, among other things, an advisory board member at the consulting firm Kekst CNC and President of the EBS business school.
His work for Shein involves data protection, cyber security and geopolitics, said Oettinger. “My consulting work is limited, on a very small scale and not my main work. It is not a focus of my work,” he said. He may fly to Singapore or the USA for this, said Oettinger. He carries out his work wherever it is requested.
Oettinger took the precaution of defending himself against possible interpretations of his new task for Shein: “If it is now claimed that I am lobbying for Shein, that is not true. I am not a lobbyist.” Oettinger’s company, Oettinger Consulting Wirtschafts- und Politikberatung GmbH, is registered on the . “As a rule, our consulting work is internal advice to senior employees of our clients,” it states in general terms. “This internal advice may occasionally result in the need to speak to members of the German Bundestag, their employees and members of the federal government and their employees for the purpose of obtaining information and exchanging ideas.”
EU wants to regulate Shein and Temu more strictly
The EU Commission recently requested more information from online retailers such as Shein and Temu on how to combat illegal products and manipulate consumers. To this end, the Brussels authority submitted a request for information at the end of June based on a new EU law for digital services (Digital Services Act). Temu and Shein had to provide the requested information by July 12. The Commission wanted to determine the next steps based on the answers.
At the end of April, the Federal Association of Consumer Organizations (VZBV) accused the online retailer of using manipulative designs on its website to pressure users to make purchases. The consumer advocates also criticized complicated complaint procedures and hidden contact options. This meant that Shein violated the DSA on several occasions.
Source: Stern
