Indian billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s company has relaunched Chinese fast fashionwear Shein in India, almost five years after it was banned by the Narendra Modi government.
Reliance Retail launched the app over the weekend, Reuters reported, citing a person with direct knowledge of Reliance's launch plans.
Shein has entered a long-term licensing deal with Reliance to sell products manufactured and sourced in India, according to BBC. The new app is offering dresses as low as Rs350 (£3).
Neither Reliance nor Shein have made any official announcement.
The Shein India Fast Fashion app represents a departure from Reliance's strategy of adding brands to its flagship fashion app Ajio - whose offering includes Superdry and Gap – as it competes with rivals such as Myntra from Walmart's Flipkart.
Founded in China in 2012 and later headquartered in Singapore, Shein offers a vast selection of low-priced Western clothes. The app was banned in India in 2020 along with Tiktok and dozens of other Chinese apps due to data security concerns after a border dispute soured Indo-Chinese relations.
The Indian government last year revealed that Reliance had entered an agreement with Shein under which Indian manufacturers would supply products under the Shein brand. It did not make any other details public.
"The fashion OG is back," said a message displayed upon opening the app. Deliveries will initially be limited to a few cities including New Delhi and Mumbai and expanded nationwide soon, it said.
Reliance will pay a licence fee for using Shein's brand name, said the person with direct knowledge of the matter. There is no equity investment in the partnership, the person said, without elaborating on financial arrangements.
All Shein-branded products sold through the app are designed and made in India, said a second person with direct knowledge of the matter. The clothing will later be made available on Ajio, the person said, without providing a time frame.
Additional reporting by agencies.
