‘I should’ve done more research’: Influencer slammed for defending Shein apologizes
By Bryan Ke
June 27, 2023
An influencer with nearly 500,000 followers on Instagram has apologized after receiving backlash for defending Chinese fast-fashion label Shein.
Latest statement: Dani Carbonari, known online as Dani DMC, apologized for her actions on Instagram on Monday and admitted that she “should’ve done more research.”
In her apology video, the 30-year-old plus-size model explains that she went on a free tour of one of Shein’s outposts in China with other influencers. They met Shein’s supplier and visited the company’s “innovation center” during the visit.
Carbonari clarified that while their accommodation was taken care of, they were not paid to make any online posts.
What happened: Carbonari and her fellow influencers, including Destene Sudduth, Aujené Butler, Fernanda Stephany Campuzano, Kenya Freeman and Marina Saavedra, were all invited to Shein’s outpost in Guangzhou. Carbonari documented her trip and shared a video about it on June 20.
Several social media users accused Carbonari of dismissing Shein’s reported history of providing poor working conditions for its employees.
Last year, one of the issues uncovered by a Channel 4 investigation was the long working hours of Shein’s employees, which went up to 18 hours a day. This was reportedly discovered in at least two of Shein’s factories in China.
Defending Shein: Carbonari defended Shein in one of her now-deleted TikTok videos, which was reshared on Twitter by social media users such as comedian Franchesca Ramsey.
In the video, Carbonari claims that she has “so much more awareness of what’s going on behind the scenes than any of you ever could because you don’t see what’s going on.”
“I’ve seen stuff with my own two eyes. If you think it’s propaganda, that’s cool,” Carbonari says, adding that her critics have “never seen what’s going on” as they have never been to China.
The plus-size model also shared more details in another now-deleted TikTok video in an attempt to debunk rumors.
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