Shein‘s return to India is conditional on strict data-related requirements. Commerce minister Piyush Goyal has revealed that the Chinese fast-fashion retailer have to meet stringent data localisation conditions to re-enter the Indian market after its 2020 ban. These conditions include relinquishing control of its local operations and data to its Indian partner, Reliance Retail, ensuring that all data remains within India and both parties adhere to strict security measures.
In a parliamentary response, Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal outlined the terms of the agreement between Reliance Retail and Shein, a report by news agency PTI said.
Goyal highlighted Reliance Retail Ventures Ltd’s (RRVL) partnership with Shein, stating that its subsidiary, Reliance Retail Ltd (RRL), has a technology agreement with Roadget Business Pte Ltd, the Singapore-based owner of Shein.
Condition for Reliance and Shein to sell products in India
Shein will operate solely as a technology provider, while Reliance Retail maintains full ownership and control of the platform, including all data collected from Indian customers.
“The licence agreement covered the protection that ownership and control of the platform will always remain with RRVL through its wholly-owned subsidiary,” said Goyal in the reply.
He added that “as per the agreement, at all times, the platform will be hosted on infrastructure in India and all platform data will remain in India with Shein having no access to, or rights over, such data.”
The agreement requires consenting parties to follow Indian laws and ensure localisation of infrastructure and platform data.
“RRVL is also advised to ensure compliance with all existing laws of India and security audit of complete infrastructure can be undertaken by any government empanelled cyber security auditor,” he said.
Under this agreement, the new platform will create a network of local manufacturers and suppliers who will manufacture products under the brand Shein and sell them domestically and globally.
“It is expected that this will help in the growth of the Indian textiles manufacturing sector, including local handicraft and create significant employment,” said Goyal.
The minister also clarified that the “sale of Shein-branded products in India was not banned,” but the app was.
Shein app ban in 2020
Shein was among the group of Chinese apps that the government banned in 2020, based on concerns about national security and data privacy. Shein’s re-entry involved extensive scrutiny from multiple government agencies, including the Ministry of Textiles, the IT Ministry, and the Ministry of Home Affairs.
Shein products were available in the online market through platforms as Amazon.
