Online fashion retailer Shein said that it plans to cut emissions across its entire supply chain by 25 per cent over the next eight years.

The Chinese fast fashion company said that along with reducing carbon emissions, it is accelerating the use of recycled materials in its products. Shein will also focus on nearshoring and onshoring to meet the 2030 target, which Shein claims will reduce reliance on airfreight.

Shein measured its greenhouse gas emissions in 2021 and is using these as a baseline to measure the carbon it reduces in the supply chain.

The fashion retailer will increase investments in energy saving efforts across its operations and will also purchase renewable energy certificates.

In order to achieve these lower emissions, Shein is committing up to $7.6 million in programmatic funding to Apparel Impact Institute (Aii), a non profit organisation dedicated to decarbonising and modernising the fashion industry supply chain.

“Today we’re taking a significant step forward, announcing a new set of 2030 goals that will help us accomplish emissions reduction targets for our entire supply chain over the next seven years,” said Adam Whinston, global head of ESG at SHEIN. “Our partnerships with Brookfield and Aii further demonstrate our commitment to implementing long-term initiatives to empower suppliers and work to promote sustainable innovation focusing on reducing carbon emissions.

“This announcement further solidifies our commitment to sustainability and corporate responsibility initiatives at a company level.”

Shein has also partnered with Brookfield Renewable Partners, a global renewable power and decarbonisation business. The retailer said that this would enable Shein’s supply chain partners to power their operations using renewable energy.

The move comes months after the company hit a $100 billion valuation after a $1 billion to $2 billion funding round.

The online retailer was founded in 2008 in Nanjing, China and made an estimated $10 billion in 2020 according to an estimate by Coresight Research.

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