Toxic truth about the UK’s most downloaded shopping app Temu that has astonishing discounts and sells handbags for 78p
ASTONISHING discounts and handbags for as little as 78p . . . but is the latest fast-fashion app to hit the UK hiding a dark side?
Miranda Knox finds out.
Fancy an eyeliner for just 57p? How about a kids’ dinosaur backpack for only £1.98?
You could even get a cute pair of flats delivered to your door for as little as £2.99.
It sounds too good to be true, but the UK’s most downloaded app this year, Temu (pronounced tee-moo), offers just that.
With impossibly cheap products, “lightning” sales and 90 per cent discounts, it’s the ultra-budget retailer that promises customers they can “shop like a billionaire”.
But beneath Temu’s dirt-cheap prices and mind-boggling array of products lurks a growing sense of unease.
The site has been dogged by negative reviews, claims of undelivered parcels, poor customer service and, most concerning of all, an “extremely high risk” of forced labour.
Now, some critics are questioning if Temu — which means Team Up, Price Down — could, in fact, be toxic.
Founded in September 2022 by Chinese e-commerce giant PDD Holdings, which also owns online retailer Pinduoduo, Temu advertises itself as an online marketplace connecting consumers with millions of sellers and brands, with “the mission to empower them to live their best lives”.
Attack on senses
Despite only launching here in April, the Temu app has already been downloaded nine million times in the UK alone.
I did the same — and it felt like an instant attack on the senses.
Colourful, flashing promotions, games and messages piled up in my Temu inbox, all offering exciting prizes and deals.
My personal email inbox is flooded too.
“A key technique they use [to draw in consumers] is ‘gamification’,” says retail and consumer behavioural expert Dr Amna Khan from Manchester Metropolitan University.
“When you go on to the site for the first time, a casino wheel comes up offering various prizes, creating intrigue and encouraging engagement.
“This lures you in to shop more.
“The high reductions instantly make the consumer think they’ve got an amazing deal, too.
“And they’re creating the idea of FOMO (fear of missing out), so the customer will buy quickly.”
The home page is awash with eye-catching ads for items I never even knew I needed — but suddenly want — such as a silicone utensil rest (yours for just £1.09), a plastic dumpling mould (a steal at 57p) or a “lightweight sanitary napkin bag” for 89p.
There are special sections with 90 per cent off thousands of items, goods for £1 or less and clearance sales.
Every product’s price is marked as heavily discounted.
There are “lightning deals” and free shipping with a countdown timer, so you feel you must act quickly or risk losing out.
I managed to buy nine items for less than £25, snapping up a children’s bubble gun for £3.25, a six-pack of gold hoop earrings for £1.79, a pair of black sunnies, also £1.79, a mini straw bag costing just 78p, a sleeveless dress for £3.67, a set of 13 make-up brushes costing £1.47, a water bottle for £2.69, a pair of sandals for £3.69 and a pair of wedges for £5.18.
While paying, I was informed I had made a total saving of £72.40 and qualified for free shipping.
Delivery isn’t quick — the site says 78.7 per cent of orders arrive within eight days. But when it’s free, who’s complaining?
Amna says: “The low price means consumers have low expectations, and it means the buyer is happier to wait longer for delivery.”
Of course, undercutting competitors doesn’t come cheap and, according to business estimates, Temu is currently losing up to £730million a year.
“The prices are really low, but at the moment I don’t think their primary purpose would be to make profit on everything — I think it’s to capture the market,” says Amna.
“Once they’ve got the consumer and know what they’re interested in, then the prices can go up.”
The site has grown rapidly in an extremely short space of time, thanks to clever advertising, encouraging users to promote the app on their social networks and get friends and family to sign up.
Despite shrewd marketing and rock-bottom prices, the site suffers from some damning reviews.
On TrustPilot, the app scores a fairly reasonable 3.5 stars out of five — but 31 per cent of users give it just one.
And it’s impossible to ignore the critical comments.
One TrustPilot user wrote: “Worst experience, I didn’t receive my packet which cost €42 and when I contacted customer care they just said it’s delivered and they cannot do anything.”
Another described Temu as “terrible”, adding, “Made two orders, and both said they were delivered two days ago.
“Nothing was delivered. Customer support is useless.”
A third wrote: “Deleted the app, never bought an item and keep getting bombarded with texts which l cannot seem to block.
“Driving me insane. Just go away.”
Many reviews slam the quality of Temu’s goods.
So when my items arrived, I wasn’t surprised they were of a poor standard.
The black and white dress is see-through with poorly stitched seams, while the pair of sandals has a sole as thin as cardboard.
The wedges are so flimsy I would genuinely worry about slipping and spraining my ankle.
I’d use the water bottle, even if it looks like it might not last too long before breaking.
But the 78p bag was a surprising hit in terms of looks.
That said, I wouldn’t trust it as a place to store anything valuable in case it broke.
My husband had similarly mixed results with his order.
Two of the shirts he bought are falling apart at some seams, with loose threads and poor stitching.
The environmental impact of Temu’s suppliers is another cause for concern, while there are serious concerns regarding workers’ rights.
In June, US lawmakers warned there was an “extremely high risk” products sold on the site had been made by forced labour.
It’s feared the products are being made by Uyghur Muslim people, detained by the Chinese authorities since 2017 in what they say are “re-education” camps in Xinjiang.
In the report, the House Select Committee said Temu’s business model enabled the company to avoid complying with US law blocking imports from the region unless firms can provide proof their items were made without forced labour.
According to the New York Times, Temu told the committee it asked its sellers to sign a code of conduct specifying a “zero-tolerance policy” for the use of forced, indentured or penal labour.
Temu’s code of conduct also states that the company reserves the right to inspect factories and warehouses.
Of course, Temu isn’t the first low-budget site to face criticism.
Fast fashion giant Shein, which was founded in 2008 and churns out up to 10,000 new products a day, has also come under scrutiny.
Now worth a reported £79billion, Shein isn’t too happy about newcomer Temu threatening to take a piece of the retail pie.
Trick consumers
The two companies are now at “war” in a bid to gain control of the US market.
Shein began by suing Temu in Illinois last year, accusing them of encouraging social media influencers to make “false and deceptive statements” against them.
They also alleged in the lawsuit that Temu has “attempted to impersonate the Shein brand.
The battle ramped up last month, with Temu filing a lawsuit against its competitor, claiming it is trying to force its rival out of the US, describing the American market as “the primary theatre of this war”.
Both sites have also faced accusations of “stealing” independent designers’ work — although Temu denies responsibility of any intellectual property infringement.
They say on their site they are “a marketplace where third-party sellers can offer their goods directly to consumers” and that they are “not actively involved in the listing and sale of sellers’ items”.
On Twitter, one digital artist claimed her artwork was replicated and sold on Temu’s site before being taken down.
Posting a screenshot of an email she claims to be from Temu, she wrote: “The evil has been purged. My artwork has been removed.
“It sucks that they managed to sell over 1,000 pieces which I didn’t see a single penny of.”
Despite growing concerns, Temu has millions of social media followers and billions of app users worldwide — so it remains a force to be reckoned with.
Temu did not respond to our request for comment.
