Shein, the Chinese-origin online seller of trinkets and baubles, first came on the U.S. scene in 2017, and then really exploded in the early 2020s. It sent shockwaves through a whole genre of American apparel and gift retailers who couldn’t compete with its fast—and impressively cheap—business model. Now in 2026, the threat has largely passed, partly as a result of the end of the de minimis free-duty rules which have adjusted the original giveaway price tags. But I also suspect consumer fatigue with the novelty, quality, and negative headlines (read FTC) Shein delivers. Now as it prepares to go public (in Hong Kong after failed attempts in the U.S. and London), we learn it is actually losing money. Sales in the U.S. were off 14 percent in the first quarter. Shein has had plenty of time to fix its business model to deal with changing tariffs and consumer shifts but apparently that’s just not happening. And we’re guessing its chief competitor privately owned Temu is in a similar situation. All in all, the shine is clearly off Shein right now.