Chinese-founded Shein Global Holdings was once valued at nearly $100 billion, more than the parent companies of H&M and Zara combined. At its 2022 peak, the valuation pushed the reclusive entrepreneur’s net worth above $23 billion.
But Xu’s fortune has since fallen sharply as Shein faces higher tariffs, mounting regulatory and political scrutiny, and intensifying competition.
Shein went public in Hong Kong on Sept. 1 at a valuation of just over a quarter of its 2022 peak, AFP reported.
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A customer carries a Shein retailer’s bag at a store. Photo by AFP |
Xu, 43, owns about 30% of the company, putting his personal fortune at roughly $8 billion based on the IPO price, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
The more than $15 billion decline in his wealth also reflects unfavorable timing for Shein’s listing.
Chinese consumer brands that went public over the past year initially attracted strong investor demand, but attention has increasingly shifted toward a wave of artificial intelligence companies entering the market and creating new billionaires.
“They definitely missed the window,” Sam Wyatt, an international equities portfolio manager at Melbourne-based U Ethical Investors, told Bloomberg about Shein’s IPO.
He said e-commerce has become a less compelling investment story than artificial intelligence.
Xu founded Shein in 2012 with three partners who had previously worked together at a search-engine marketing company. Drawing on that experience, they developed the business into a global online retailer specializing in inexpensive, trend-driven clothing.
Shein expanded rapidly during the Covid-19 pandemic as online shopping surged, particularly among younger consumers. Its growth has since slowed, according to financial figures disclosed by the company in July.
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