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Cardi B has drawn attention for her latest campaign with a popular fast fashion brand, Shein.
The 32-year-old rapper shared a video on Instagram on Tuesday (December 3) to announce her campaign with the brand. In the video, she posed in a variety of oversized jackets, suitable for the cold winter months.
“Ladies, this year we are going to invest in a good coat,” said her voice in the background of the clip, as she posed in a long, gray, puffy coat. “Don't walk around in that jean jacket you wore in the spring. Or don't walk into the club saying, 'I'm not cold.'”
The video continued with another snapshot of the “Bodak Yellow” rapper walking down the stairs in a brown leather coat. She noted that all of her looks came from Shein and that each coat cost less than $200.
Cardi B's next look was a tan jacket, with a puffy fur hood. He also applauded his mother for buying him the jackets when she was “on a tight budget.”
She ended her video wearing a brown leather jacket, before sharing that Shein is currently having a sale with 90 percent off select items. She urged her fans to use her code “BFCARDI” to get an extra 15 percent off their orders.
However, fans have made it clear that they are not very impressed with Cardi B's latest partnership.
“Girl, you wear Hermes and Chanel, not Shein,” one person commented on her Instagram post, while another person on X/Twitter wrote: “Shein????? This is really who we are as a society now, why on God's green earth is Cardi doing Shein ads?
“This is very embarrassing. Shein promotion…. you need to regroup and think about something else because…” a third user posted.
Despite some criticism, other fans defended Cardi B for working with Shein and admitted that they liked the brand. They were also not surprised by the singer's campaign, as she previously partnered with fast fashion brands, including Fashion Nova.
“My God, love! If Cardi wears SHEIN, I will wear SHEIN,” one fan commented on her Instagram post.
“Y'all must have forgotten when Cardi was rocking Fashion Nova, let's not act new, y'all must be new here,” another person wrote. Meanwhile, some people praised Cardi B for simply making Shein's clothes look attractive.
“I'm trying to figure out if they look that good [forreal] or just makes them look expensive,” one fan wrote in the comments of her Instagram post, while another joked, “When you can dress up you can make anything look rich and not cheap!”
the independent A rep for Cardi B has been contacted for comment.
Shein, a fast fashion retailer founded in China, has become known for its abundant and affordable clothing options, and the company is valued at more than $100 billion. The e-commerce brand has been at the center of much controversy since its founding in 2008, with accusations of labor exploitation, ideas stolen from independent designers and contributing to environmental damage caused by the fast fashion industry.
The brand was previously accused by independent designers of racketeering activities related to violations in a RICO lawsuit. The lawsuit, filed in July 2023, claimed that the clothing giant had used a “secret algorithm” to identify fashion art and allegedly reproduced artists' designs for its fast fashion website.
In a statement to the independent, A Shein spokesperson said at the time: “SHEIN takes all infringement claims seriously and we take prompt action when complaints are raised by valid intellectual property rights holders. “We will vigorously defend against this lawsuit and any claims that are without merit.”
