Shein abandons hunt for UK warehouse as London listing hangs in the balance

Shein has kicked off the search for a warehouse last summer, a move that was seen as laying the groundwork for its blockbuster £50bn float on the London Stock Exchange.

However, following a threatened crackdown on the retailer’s business model by regulators in both the US and EU, and with growing criticism of the brand in the UK by MPs about a lack of transparency in its supply chain, the Singapore-based retailer’s IPO is now in the balance.

A spokesman for the brand told The Telegraph: “To support the growth of the business, Shein constantly explores warehousing locations worldwide. However, as Shein has no immediate need for a warehouse in the UK, there are no plans to have one.”

The news comes after Shein had been set to slash its target valuation for the float from £50bn to £40bn – nearly a quarter less than Shein’s 2023 fundraising value.

That in turn was due to regulatory pressure, with President Donald Trump’s administration planning on closing the “de minimis” duty exemption that allows imports valued under $800 (£645) to enter the country duty-free.

Last week, the European Commission urged EU lawmakers to phase out its exemption on customs duties for parcels under €150 to tackle what it called “dangerous products” flooding the market.

“We have seen a surge in low-value products sold by non-EU traders sold by online marketplaces,” said the commission vice-president Henna Virkkunen. “Many of those products, they have been found to be unsafe, counterfeited or even dangerous, so they are not often meeting our standards.”