Too wonder why people shop on temu Shein etc

[HappySunday1]

When we know how bad the environment is how much plastic and stuff ends up in land fill how poor the workers conditions are why are we supporting them. I see so many people doing big hauls of stuff. I know it’s cheap and maybe it’s all people can afford by you buy cheap you buy twice.

The same reason why people do anything, because they want to.

No, not at all. I didn't mean it to come across like that. Sorry.

What I meant was that OP's coming across as holier-than-though so we must assume she has absolutely squeaky clean environmental credentials. People in glass houses and all that.....

Which has got absolutely fuck-all to do with other people's shopping habits.

I could link you 50 different things on Temu that are on sale on Amazon for three or four times the price, I could probably find them on etsy too at 6x the price on Temu.

I buy candle jars and empty tins as I make candles and cannabalm. They are cheap and recyclable so I dont see a problem

Yeah but @Acta that argument is one which always gets trotted out. That if you're not living 100% ethically you cannot criticise about anything.

Refusing to use Temu/Shein is a very low ethical bar to set.

They are just soft toys. How dangerous can they possible be?

I mean, I'm a lot more depressed by the cost of living crisis than I am by people buying things from Temu.

I’ve bought a few stocking fillers and small presents from temu as they’re more affordable than buying from other places 🤷‍♀️

There’s really no excuse to be shopping from SHEIN, Temu OR the high street.

I fashion my own garments from weaving hay, menstrual blood and woad.

Tbf, they do have to be careful. Small eyes in dolls with toddlers etc.

Is it about being ethical or is it just people buying crap they don’t need and adding to landfill? Temu really makes me do a double take sometimes- a tee shirt for a euro? I do wonder whether eg toys/electronic stuff have a safety guarantee/compliance to eye regulations on them. It’s a tough one op, I don’t buy from them because I don’t like the idea of them, and I think people shouldn’t buy funky cute crap they’ll declutter out of there in a few months but then I get all of our clothes in penny’s because we can’t afford anything else which someone on mn once went at me over and it’s true

We use sHein for DD1 clothes. Excellent quality, beautiful clothes, that we can afford. I used to try and buy from ‘real shops’ but got sick of crappy quality products where they never had the right sizes in.

I would worry more about worker conditions if I hadn’t lived long enough to see they’re all at it. The companies list of “uses child or convict Labour” is very very long indeed.

@HomeBird43 - you'd be surprised. What are they stuffed with, do they meet the standards for being fire-resistant, what sort of chemicals have been used to treat the fabric/stuffing, how secure is the stitching etc etc etc.

All toys sold in the UK should be safety tested. Chinese fakes are not tested and are therefore cheaper. You do not know what risks you are taking buying fakes on Temu.

I've never used them but I know lots of teachers use Temu for bulk buying classroom resources like counters, dice, cubes etc. I know they shouldn't but some schools are so badly resourced and teachers want the children to have practical materials to use to support their lessons. Even just buying storage boxes and baskets for books and utensils can cost a small fortune and every new teacher needs to supply all this (at least they have needed to in any school I've worked in).

Quality is appalling most of the time. Semi disposable. Terrible materials, bad cuts. I guess this doesn't bother some people.

I almost exclusively shop at charity shops, vinted and eBay. So many brand new, quality stuff on offer for a fraction of the price.

Vinted isn’t that cheap sometimes. Once you add postage etc.

I’m a bit more concerned about this https://grizzlyreports.com/we-believe-pdd-is-a-dying-fraudulent-company-and-its-shopping-app-temu-is-cleverly-hidden-spyware-that-poses-an-urgent-security-threat-to-u-s-national-interests/

Its a very long read, but even skimming it is eye-opening.

Plenty of the stuff sold isn't "plastic badly made crap" though. I've bought some things that are indeed plastic, but are well made (dolls house food & plants, a neck fan, fancy clip board and stop watch), and a number of things that aren't plastic such as glass marbles for DCs' stockings. I've had one (metal) item arrive damaged as it was poorly packaged, but everything else has arrived on time, in good condition and been good quality. It isn't top end stuff by any means, but it has (so far!) been much better than the quality of some items I've seen in stores.

TBH I did originally discount it because of ethics, until the penny dropped that they are selling exactly the same stuff made in the same factories as the items listed on Amazon or stocked in B&M etc just in slightly altered packaging. Does paying more from those retailers change the conditions it was made in? I don't think it does unless you are buying from a select number of well-known brands who are open about their products' traceability.

@HappySunday1 what is all the plastic crap people are buying? To me sounds like back pedalling oh if you need a coat, that’s ok but plastic crap is a no.
I’ve bought from both and it’s been homeware all good quality - throws, cushions etc I’ve bought stocking fillers for my daughter all things that she has wanted like new hair clips, loom bands, scrunchies.
The exact same stuff is sold on Amazon at a much higher price. The salt and pepper shakers I bought were £6.48 but are £14.99 on Amazon. Just because you buy on there doesn’t mean it’s not the same companies.

Much of this.

There will be many shoppers who genuinely need to go as cheap as possible all the time. I absolutely get this.

A huge number of their customers however shop regularly for non essentials in volume.
The fabulous thing about these companies in particular is not just they emplo slave labour as many high street stores use too but they have the added bonuses of -

• releasing massive numbers of new lines daily thus encouraging mass unnecessary consumption. Shein releases items than several high street stores put together.
• clever marketing and algorithms in their apps to chick crazy offers at you again encouraging you to buy more,
• the need to only be seen in an item once means so much stuff ends up in landfill, often on beaches of developing countries (don't fool yourself that charities can sell on as shoppers don't pay their price as it's cheaper to get new)
• no need to abide by safety regs in manufacturing

It's excellent how low they have set the bar

A huge majority of us do not need this unnecessary shit in our lives and we are directly contributing to a fucked up planet by continuing

I've never bought anything from either but you've obviously made up your mind about it and don't seem interested in others' point of view.

I bought a load of swimsuits off Shein for a beach holiday when my baby was 3 months old. I wasn't about to shell out for Seafolly and the like when there's no way they're going to fit in a year's time...

I was actually really impressed by the quality - easily on a par with swimsuits I've had from M&S.

Completely agree about not buying excessive stuff, but the problems aren't exclusive to Shein etc, many expensive retailers are guilty of the same.

😬