A Sustainable Fashion Brand Was Just Sold to Shein. I Know How We Ended Up Here.

Everlane’s marketing emails from 2016 to 2019 created a sense of urgency through minimalist, online-only product launches released one at a time. Each announcement felt like a major event, making customers feel they could not miss new items such as shirts, sweaters, and mules. The brand’s influence extended to fashion trends, with customers viewing Everlane as a guide during shifting pants silhouettes. Reports that Shein is buying Everlane have prompted disappointment because it may undermine the dream of a more ethical fashion brand that promoted radical transparency. Some responses criticize people who ask where to shop next, arguing that those with full Everlane wardrobes are part of the problem.

"Back then, I was diligent about unsubscribing from marketing emails, but Everlane's were different. The minimalist, online-only (at first anyway) retailer introduced new products one at a time, and I simply could not miss an announcement that they were launching a Square Silk Shirt or a Waffle Knit Sweater or Modern Loafer Mules. The scarcity made each launch feel like an event capable of ever-so-slightly shifting the Earth's axis."

"Everything was going to be different now that Everlane was making Chelsea boots. Pants silhouettes were in a destabilizing state of flux during this time, you have to remember, but Everlane was there to show the women of Brooklyn and San Francisco the way. I feel like a big old dork about this now, of course."

"The fast-fashion giant Shein is reportedly buying Everlane, putting an ugly punctuation mark on the dream of a more ethical fashion brand that preached "radical transparency" along with its chic basics. Most people seem to be lamenting this news along with me, but it has also inspired the occasional chide."

"The Guardian quoted a British sustainable fashion consultant who commented, "The people asking, 'where am I going to shop now?' when they have a wardrobe full of Everlane clothing, are part of the problem." My bad, I guess. "I did not know so many ppl were still shopping at Everlane like that," wrote one popular Substacker."

Read at Slate Magazine