Dive Brief:
- Nearly 30% of customers will reduce or stop shopping at China-based online marketplaces like Shein, Temu and AliExpress if prices rise, according to data from marketing platform Omnisend.
- The report, gathered from a survey of 1,000 people, shows that customers have already reduced their year-over-year spending at Shein, Temu and AliExpress between 2024 and 2025. At Temu, daily shopping fell 17%, while on Shein, it fell 41% and at AliExpress, daily shopping fell 38%.
- Temu in particular is facing a tougher 2025 landscape, as initial buzz around its viral marketing and low prices is fading, Greg Zakowicz, senior e-commerce expert at Omnisend, said in an email.
Dive Insight:
President Donald Trump plans to nix the de minimis exemption for products from China and Hong Kong this May. This could have large implications on fast fashion giants that rely on the exemption to avoid duties on lower priced goods. This, coupled with increased tariffs on China, are sounding the alarm regarding the potential for increased prices from the companies.
However, Omnisend’s report suggests that consumers are already using the platforms less than they were a year ago. The data is compiled from two surveys conducted in April 2024 and February 2025, per an Omnisend spokesperson. The surveys were commissioned by Omnisend and conducted by Cint.
The surveys found that those who say they shop on Shein weekly decreased 8% year over year, and reported monthly shoppers decreased 11% in the time period. Those that said they shopped on Shein at least once a year dropped 8%.
At AliExpress, those that reported shopping weekly fell 4%, monthly shoppers dropped 19%, and yearly shoppers dropped 12%.
Meanwhile, survey respondents that said they shop on Temu weekly fell 19% year over year, and those that said monthly dropped 18% in the period. Those that said at least once a year dropped 7%.
“Issues like long shipping times, inconsistent product quality, and waning discretionary spending are starting to expose cracks in Temu’s foundation,” Zakowicz said. “With massive tariffs slapped on top, Temu now faces a perfect storm — shrinking margins, shaken consumer trust, and a gaping hole in their main value proposition.”
The report also analyzed whether customers trusted Temu compared to e-commerce giant Amazon. About 88% of respondents said they trusted Amazon more than Temu, while 4.9% said they trusted Temu more than Amazon. About 8% reported trusting neither.
Last year, Omnisend’s report focused on consumer trust in Temu, and found that though respondents reported a lack of trust in the fast fashion platform, they still shopped there.
