This Fashion Firm Wants to Be the New Shein Alternative

Dressin is pivoting from retail wholesale B2B model to direct-to-consumer (DTC).

The company launched Dressin.com on Wednesday, a new online destination for fast-fashion consumers aimed as an alternate option to competitors such as Shein, Temu and Fashion Nova.

Dressin’s DTC move has it putting style, value and ethics at the forefront, providing consumers with style and value without giving up quality or having consumers pay the traditional retail markup. It plans a weekly update of the latest trends in women’s apparel and accessories on its site.

Because it is operating DTC, it can deliver retail-ready goods at wholesale prices, with select items starting at 99 cents and ranging up to $16.99. It is also offering a “Cash Grab Rewards” program, providing savings and incentives to members. Dressin’s move to DTC will also allow it to gather real-time customer insights to “inform” on design and production processes.

“Our new direct-to-consumer model allows us to better serve our customers and provide unparalleled value,” said Mengtian Zhou, head of marketing and business development, adding that the company is offering “high-quality, ethically produced fashion” that’s both stylish and affordable.

The company emphasized that it has a commitment to ethical labor practices. It owns and operates its own factories, and partners with vetted outsourced facilities in Vietnam. Those production facilities allows Dressin to distance itself from what has become a controversial “Made in China” label, and it helps the company ensure transparency and quality control throughout the entire production cycle.

High-volume fast-fashion firms such as Shein and Temu have attracted the attention of American lawmakers due to allegations of forced labor risks in their supply chains. But it also isn’t just U.S. lawmakers who are concerned about Shein’s alleged use of forced Uyghur labor, something that it has repeatedly denied. Lawmakers elsewhere are also growing concerned over Shein’s “toxic” reputation and alleged “trade tricks.” And Italy’s antitrust watchdog in September opened a greenwashing probe into Shein.

Those concerns were enough to put up roadblocks to a Shein plan for an IPO in the U.S., and now its planning an IPO in the U.K. instead. There are concerns that worker factory conditions might foil those U.K. plans too.

In addition to its own designs, Dressin also curates a variety of products from independent brands and Amazon sellers. That gives customers a wider range of fashion options. The company also said it has a “rigorous material selection process,” as well as a “robust after-sales” customer support system. In addition to the collection on the Dressin.com website, there is also a Dressin app available on Google Play and the App Store.