Shein hires development director for European market
Chinese fashion e-tailer Shein, a ubiquitous presence in young Europeans’ wardrobes, has hired a development director to take charge of its European operations and mastermind its expansion in the region. Jacobo Garcia Miña has taken up the post in July, a Shein spokesperson told FashionNetwork.com, confirming a report by Spanish industry magazine Modaes.
Garcia Miña has an almost 20-year experience in European fashion retail distribution, from mass-market brands to luxury labels. Between 2003 and 2007, he first worked for H&M and then Inditex in Spain (notably in charge of merchandising), before spending four years in London with Burberry. His career also includes a stint at the Chalhoub Group from 2015 to 2018, where he was tasked with expanding the presence of international brands in the Middle East. He then moved to Ireland, with software developer Salesforce, later becoming commercial director of ViSenze, a start-up that creates AI solutions to improve the performance of retail chains.
Garcia Miña’s new job with Shein is based in Ireland's capital Dublin. On his LinkedIn profile, Garcia Miña stated that his mission is “helping new and existing brands to grow together with Shein.” In addition to boosting Shein’s business in Europe, Garcia Miña’s roadmap doubtlessly includes interacting with other industry players, NGOs and public authorities, as the budget fashion e-tailer has been the target of much criticism for its practices, regarded as harmful to both people and the planet.
A fast-fashion steamroller, Shein’s sales have skyrocketed in three years, growing from an annual revenue of about $3 billion in 2019 to one of over $15 billion in 2021. Shein might even be able to top the $20 billion mark by the end of 2022, according to the Washington Post. The e-tailer founded by Chris Xu in 2008 is very active in the USA and Europe. In spring 2022, it carried out a funding round worth $1 billion, which reportedly has helped grow its valuation to over $100 billion.
To establish a connection with customers, Shein is touring Europe this summer with a series of pop-up stores, visiting Paris in early July (supported by a local poster campaign), before moving on to Berlin and Rome. In addition, to restore its reputation in the face of widespread criticism, Shein, whose site features hundreds of new products on a daily basis, has recently announced the setting up a $50 million fund to finance textile waste management initiatives.
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