Online retailers such as Temu and Shein are known for selling cheap products such as baby clothes, kitchenware, and electronics. The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) wants to know the actual costs that overseas online retailers are cutting to sell these products at low prices.
CPSC Commissioners Peter Feldman and Douglas Dziak issued a joint statement today urging staff to evaluate the operations of foreign e-commerce sites, naming Shein and Temu as two online retailers that “raise specific concerns.”
Recent news reports of “deadly baby products” being sold on these platforms have raised alarm bells with the CPSC. A recent report from The Information said some baby products sold on Shein are deemed unsafe, including a children’s drawstring hoodie that regulators have warned could pose a strangulation hazard. Fashion industry news site Fashion Dive discovered that Temu was selling a brand of children’s pajamas that the CPSC found to violate “flammability standards for children’s pajamas.”
A Shain spokesperson said in a statement to CNN that customer safety is “our top priority, and we are investing millions of dollars to strengthen our compliance program.” We have also reached out to Mr. Tem via email seeking an opportunity to respond to the CSPC allegations.
The CSPC is not the first U.S. government agency to scrutinize foreign e-commerce companies like Shein and Temu. Last year, the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission released a report detailing the challenges posed by “Chinese ‘fast fashion’ platforms.” The commission questioned the platforms’ alleged exploitation of trade loopholes, as well as concerns about the sale of goods that pose product safety risks, infringe copyrights and trademarks, and use forced labor to make and sell the products.
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