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I I’ll never forget the first time I bought clothes from Shein, the China-based fast fashion retailer. I couldn’t wait to show you all my new clothes on the ‘gram in late 2018 living in New York City. I would go on the site and see so many cute tops, jackets and dresses, and they were so cheap! I would easily spend a few bucks online on all these clothes and be totally happy about it. Then came the awakening.
Shein takes over Los Angeles
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Last year, I started seeing some tweets from fashion/clothing industry insiders like Cora Harrington and Lakyn Carlton about the negative impacts of buying clothes from fast fashion stores like Shein. This new awareness made me stop shopping at Shein and other similar brands. But I am a person. There is still a high demand for these clothes.
My colleague Josie Huang wrote about how Shein continues its march towards global domination, starting here in Los Angeles, which is where the Chinese company has its US operations. Josie reports that the clothing mega-company plans to open the second of its three US distribution centers in Southern California and now has new offices in Row DTLA.
Shein recently opened a pop-up store in Montebello and is making its brand more visible in local communities. For example, Josie writes that in September, Shein commissioned five Latino artists to create murals in El Monte for National Hispanic Heritage Month. It is being exposed and that is sounding alarm bells for many activists who are concerned about Shein’s impact on everything from workers to the environment.
To read more about Shein’s global impact, check out Josie’s story.
As always, stay happy and healthy, folks.. There’s more news below, just keep reading.
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Wait… one more thing
Foods for longevity and prosperity just in time for the Lunar New Year
Join the fun this Lunar New Year
This Sunday is the beginning of the Lunar New Year! Millions of people are celebrating and that means… lots of food!
This week, LAist’s Fiona Chandra writes about the different dishes people eat for Lunar New Year and what each food represents.
For example, whole fish means “abundance” or “surplus”; Poon Choi, meaning “basin vegetables,” contains abalone, sea cucumber, and barbecue; and nián gāo means growth, or “growing taller each year”. There are so many other different foods that people eat for Lunar New Year. See where you can find these treats in Fiona’s story.
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