Reliance Retail’s latest move—bringing Shein back to India through a dedicated app—signals a strategic recalibration in India’s competitive fashion e-commerce landscape. Nearly five years after Shein was banned over data security concerns, the brand is re-entering the market under Reliance’s wing, ensuring all its products are designed and manufactured locally to comply with regulatory requirements. After the crackdown on Chinese apps, Shein left the Indian market in 2020, but its return has been much anticipated among fashionistas.
A strategic play
Unlike integrating Shein into its existing platform, Ajio, Reliance has opted for a standalone app strategy, tapping into Shein’s massive global brand recall. This allows Reliance to diversify its fashion portfolio while benefiting from Shein’s established digital-first approach and data-driven inventory model. More importantly, the Shein play strengthens Reliance’s positioning against key players like Myntra and Amazon, particularly in the budget-conscious fashion segment where Shein has a stronghold.
The competitive landscape
While Shein has carved a niche among buyers, it is worth noting that a great many D2C fashion brands have cropped up in the years that followed after Shein’s exit. These brands exist across price points, and particularly so at the value-end of the market, where the competition is fierce.
It remains to be seen if Shein remains to the high-quality at low-prices value proposition that they had, or whether they change their strategic positioning to reflect a new innings for the brand. In particular, it will be fascinating to see if and how the brand takes on Zudio, which is highly popular among college students who have taken to their brand of fast fashion with great gusto.
Reliance Retail’s checkered history
It goes without saying that Reliance has deep pockets. And yet, for all of its ability to crack deals and make inroads into markets, the company has made a lot of retail missteps that are hard to ignore. Make no mistake, it is a behemoth. But Goliath has been felled by David before, as seen in these examples:
- Reliance had a chain of stores dubbed ‘Reliance Delight’, which used to supply non vegetarian food, including meat and seafood. This was shut in the year 2013, due to opposition from shareholders, customers and animal rights activists.
- In 2014, Reliance shut down its books and music stores called Reliance TimeOut after a strategic misfit was found.
- Reliance Retail bought the troubled Future Group’s business for an eye-watering Rs. 24,713-crore, which was later also shut down.
- Reliance Retail was one of the key investors in Dunzo. But even as many other quick commerce players went from strength to strength, Dunzo floundered and was eventually shut down.
The Road Ahead
Now, with the much-awaited Shein being back in the Indian market, one may expect to see budget friendly, trendy, stylish and affordable clothing. Shein India will probably give a competition to Reliance Retails another fashion and clothing app AJIO which is a success among the India buyers. All competitor fast fashion companies such as Zudio, Westside, Myntra, etc. will now have another competitor, Shein India Fast Fashion.
However, the success of Shein’s comeback hinges on consumer sentiment. Will shoppers embrace the brand once more, or will past concerns overshadow its appeal? With Shein’s upcoming London IPO and Reliance’s expansion plans, this partnership could reshape India’s fast fashion market, setting the stage for a new chapter in digital retail dominance. It will be fascinating to see how this plays out, and if Shein’s lustre and pull remains strong among consumers.
