Fast-fashion giants Shein and Temu are coming under mounting scrutiny in the United States as senior lawmakers intensify calls for investigations into allegations ranging from forced labour to widespread intellectual property violations.
In Texas, Attorney General Ken Paxton has opened a formal inquiry into Shein, echoing similar investigations already underway in several European countries.
At the federal level, Senator Tom Cotton has urged Washington to launch a broader national probe into both Shein and Temu. Cotton described the companies as “Communist Chinese platforms”, accusing them of engaging in intellectual property theft that he says has “devastated” many US businesses.
Shein responded that it treats concerns about its business operations seriously. The company stated that it “welcomes constructive engagement with Attorney General Paxton” and intends to comply fully with the Texas investigation. It did not, however, directly address Cotton’s push for a federal inquiry. Temu has also been contacted for comment by the BBC.
Although Shein is officially headquartered in Singapore, most of its products are manufactured in China, where the company originally began operations.
In a letter addressed to US Attorney General Pam Bondi on Monday, Cotton highlighted that millions of packages from China are currently backed up in US warehouses following changes to import rules affecting low-cost shipments. In August, President Donald Trump removed the long-standing de minimis tariff exemption, which had allowed inexpensive goods to enter the country without duties. The move subjected such shipments to additional taxes and far stricter customs inspections.
Cotton said the new framework provides the Department of Justice and Homeland Security with a “golden opportunity” to take action. Long a close ally of Trump and a fervent critic of China, Cotton stressed that many independent designers and small American fashion brands have accused Shein of routinely replicating their original designs, sometimes within days of their release, and selling the knockoffs at deeply discounted prices.
He further accused Temu of hosting “sophisticated and deceptive counterfeits” on its platform. Citing a recent US investigation, Cotton said researchers found that a substantial portion of items purchased from both Shein and Temu were likely to be counterfeit.
In Texas, Paxton said that numerous reports have raised red flags regarding Shein’s alleged involvement in forced labour, alongside claims of the use of hazardous materials and misleading advertising practices. Shein has also been the subject of broader criticism over the environmental impact of its fast-fashion model and the labour conditions in factories producing goods sold on its app.
Paxton said the state’s investigation will determine whether Shein has violated Texas law, including by using unsafe materials, misrepresenting the ethical sourcing of its products, and engaging in improper data-collection practices.
“I will not allow cheap, dangerous, foreign goods to flood America and jeopardise our health,” Paxton said in an online statement.
Meanwhile, Shein is also under pressure in Europe. The European Union recently demanded that the company curb the sale of childlike sex dolls and weapons on its third-party marketplace, following alerts raised by French authorities in November. Temu, too, is under investigation in France for enabling exposure to harmful content accessible to young users.
Paxton’s scrutiny extends beyond Shein. In November, he filed a lawsuit against Roblox, accusing the gaming company of “flagrantly ignoring” safety regulations and misleading parents about alleged dangers young users face on the platform. Roblox has rejected the allegations, calling them misrepresentations of how its online ecosystem operates.
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