Dropshipping: Fast Fashion Under a New Name
Noticing an excessive amount of emojis and tacky fonts plastered all over a clothing advertisement on your Instagram feed? If so, it's probably best to scroll past: it might be the work of a dropshipping company.
Image Source: MPCA Photos
The practice of “dropshipping” itself is not necessarily an issue – many businesses use this method of distribution as a way to sell their items without needing a warehouse or storage facility for their goods. Instead, they act as a middleman between the buyer and supplier. This is known as high-ticket dropshipping, where the suppliers distribute high-quality and expensive items that have been properly manufactured. However, some practices related to this business are not so simple – or ethical. For example, some dropshippers utilize cheap labor in fast fashion companies in order to intentionally upsell poorly-made clothing.
The most common type of dropshipping happens when sellers drastically increase the prices of clothes that have been bought from fast-fashion websites like Shein, Aliexpress, or Wish. The original prices of these items rarely exceed 10 USD, yet can get sold for 20 and over. Most of the time, these products are falsely advertised and cause issues with buyer/seller relationships. Because the items that are actually being sold fall short of the promised product, buyers feel that they have been ripped off.
Some websites even list their items as “free” to catch the attention of potential customers – but don't be fooled by this tricky advertising method. These seemingly costless items actually have an extremely overpriced shipping fee attached that most people don't even notice until they've already hit checkout – a point that, when reached, causes many people to just complete the purchase instead of backing out. This process is what keeps people trapped in the buying cycle and pools more money for dropshipping companies.
It can be a tricky guessing game when trying to determine which sites are genuine sellers and which are overpriced dropshipping companies. Even globally trusted platforms such as Depop have issues with dropshippers sneaking their way through the site’s loopholes.
When determining if a website is safe to buy from, a quick reverse Google image search can usually fix your concerns. If the image gives links to commonly known fast fashion websites, it's probably best to steer clear of the item. Because dropshipping websites often steal concepts and designs directly from small businesses, you can help protect the original creator’s designs by fact-checking the source.
Buying a piece for an extremely low price at just the press of a button on your phone can seem awfully appealing, even after knowing the harmful nature of dropshipping. However, your idea of a shirt in the checkout tab will unravel just as quickly as the shirt itself. You'll often find that you get what you pay for when it comes to these brands: clothing that lasts 3-4 washing machine cycles on average. It doesn't take much for the thin fabric to wrinkle, shrink, or pull. Buying your clothes from safe and ethical second-hand shops, however, will keep your closet intact and stylish in the long run. Upcycling, clothing swaps, and purchasing from your local thrift store are also great options to consider when practicing slow fashion.
Don’t waste a “Wish” and hope that your drop shipped pair of pants will last – because they won’t!
Written by Alyx Sheridan
Alyx Sheridan is from the D.C. area. She gained interest in slow fashion through shopping at her local thrift store, and since then has been on a journey to learn more about the industry. Slow Fashion USA is her creative outlet, where she can explore this interest and hopefully inspire readers across the country.