Shein finally became a public company this month, but at a price tag well below what it once commanded in private markets.
The fast-fashion giant's shares fell 9 percent as they began trading in Hong Kong, after the company sold about 280 million shares in its initial public offering, raising around 13.60 billion Hong Kong dollars, or roughly 1.74 billion US dollars. The final offer price was set at HK$48.56 per share, below the maximum offer price of HK$49.50 that had been floated earlier. Altogether, the IPO valued Shein at around 26.5 billion dollars, a fraction of the 100 billion dollar valuation private investors had assigned the company back in 2022, at the height of its rapid growth as an online fast-fashion retailer.
The Hong Kong listing came after earlier attempts by Shein to go public in New York and then London did not materialize, as the company navigated years of scrutiny over its supply chain and corporate structure. Shein was founded in China and moved its headquarters to Singapore in 2022, a relocation that has become part of the company's broader effort to position itself as a global, rather than purely Chinese, retailer, even as much of its manufacturing and sourcing base has remained closely tied to Chinese suppliers.
The listing is one of the largest consumer retail IPOs of the year in Asia, and its performance since debut is being watched closely as a signal of investor appetite for fast-fashion and e-commerce names more broadly, at a time when several other retailers, including some well-known athletic and travel brands, have seen their own shares touch multi-year lows in recent weeks.
Investors will be watching Shein's first full quarterly results as a public company for signs of whether the discounted valuation reflects a durable reset in how markets price the business.
Why did Shein list in Hong Kong instead of New York?
Earlier attempts to go public in New York and then London did not materialize, and the company ultimately pursued a Hong Kong listing instead.