Chinese online fast-fashion retailer Shein plans to invest CNY15 billion (USD2.3 billion) to build a giant global supply chain center in the southern Chinese port city of Guangzhou, a government paper showed.

According to a government paper published by Guangzhou Development and Reform Commission on Tuesday, the project will cover an area of 3.3 million square meters, which is equivalent to combined areas of three Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport or five Guangzhou South Railway Station.

Founded in 2018 in China’s eastern city of Nanjing by Chris Xu, an American-born graduate of Washington University, Shein sells exclusively online and only targets overseas markets. Shein primarily focuses on selling fashionable men's and women’s wear that are mostly priced at almost impossible price points-below USD20 and some discount items even selling for less than USD5; the price is about less than half the price as at Inditex’s Zara.

The Chinese online fast-fashion retailers sell items to more than 200 countries, launching websites for North America, Europe, the Middle East, Australia.

The rapid growth of Shein has been driven partly by its solid relationship with suppliers. Shein maintains a close tie with factories in Guangzhou, the country’s central economic hub, port city, and center of the clothing industry.

After orders are placed by consumers, items are sent from Shein’s warehouse in Foshan, Guangdong province, to a warehouse near Los Angeles, and then shipped out via USPS.

Shein’s success is partially contributed by its social media marketing strategies; it specializes in product advertisement on social media by partnering with key opinion leaders (KOL). Instagram and TikTok key opinion leaders help the company successfully advertise an enormous discount tag for trendy and low-cost styles to young customers.

By now, the company’s official Instagram account has amassed more than 23 million followers.

Shein quickly became mainstream in North America and other regions as its marketing strategy, premium service, and attractive pricing are powerful combinations that fit in with the overseas markets.

According to data compiled by market intelligence platform Similarweb, Shein is the second most downloaded iOS shopping app in the US and Canada as of this week, only behind e-commerce giant Amazon.

Shein, whose major backers include Sequoia Capital China, IDG Capital and Tiger Global, is currently valued at USD50 billion. It booked around CNY100 billion in revenue in 2021, driven by pandemic-led online shopping sprees.