Shein posts US lobbying tab as it stays in lawmakers’ crosshairs
SHEIN, an online discount clothing retailer whose labour practices in China are being questioned by US lawmakers, spent US$600,000 in the second quarter in lobbying on Capitol Hill, its first filings of such registrations showed.
The outlay by Singapore-based Shein, launched in China in 2012, shows its moderate spending strategy to influence lawmakers on the Hill, said Daniel Auble, a senior researcher at the non-profit Center for Responsive Politics, which tracks political giving and lobbying.
In May, a bipartisan group of two dozen US representatives urged the Securities and Exchange Commission to halt Shein’s potential initial public offering reported by Reuters, until the company verified it does not use forced labour or violate the Uyghur Forced Labour Prevention Act.
Shein has denied using forced labour and that it was planning to go public in the US this year.
US lawmakers are also questioning Shein’s data privacy and use of a US duty exemption on low-priced direct shipments to consumers.
Shein’s US$600,000 lobbying outlay, filed on Friday (Jul 21), does not put it “among the biggest spenders”, Auble said.
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By contrast, US retailers Walmart spent US$1.62 million and Gap spent US$140,000 in the second quarter, lobbying disclosures showed.
Since the 2022 third quarter, Shein has paid lobbying firms Hobart Hallaway & Quayle Ventures US$500,000 and Akin, Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld US$270,000, the firms’ filings showed.
Neither firm was immediately available for comment.
A Shein spokesperson said on Friday the company will continue to “engage policymakers and participate in discussions that will help us continue to add value to the US economy, support our American workers, and bring industry-wide benefits to consumers”. REUTERS
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