A sneaker turnaround gets stress-tested, and Shein discovers valuations can run faster than its supply chain. Here’s how we got here: Shein’s listing story has gone from a growth victory lap to a valuation-defense exercise. The company is preparing a Hong Kong IPO after its New York and London paths ran into regulatory scrutiny. Its valuation could come in below $30 billion, with a $1.1 billion investor make-whole alongside pressure from tariffs, fulfillment costs and slower profit growth. This is Fashion Business Daily. Dick’s says it’s bullish on Foot Locker; we’re going to see what that claim amounts to. From Modern Retail:
Dick’s Sporting Goods says it remains bullish on its Foot Locker business, even as it lowered its yearly guidance for the segment, citing “challenging conditions” in the athletic footwear market. On Tuesday, Dick’s Sporting Goods reported that pro forma comps for Foot Locker declined 3.6% in the second quarter, versus a 0.6% increase during the first quarter.
Foot Locker went from plus 0.6% comps in Q1 to minus 3.6% in Q2, and Dick’s is pointing at “legacy footwear silhouettes.” Translation: the sneaker wall is full of pairs people wouldn’t pay full price for. The company-reported full-year guide is now minus 2% to flat. Management can call itself bullish long term, but the current trajectory is heading the other way. Meanwhile, Dick’s own comps rose 4.9%, helped by World Cup sales and bigger tickets. Same parent, wildly different shopper response. Foot Locker needs launches with heat, not another corporate confidence seminar. They paid $2.4 billion for Foot Locker in 2025. “Early” is fair as a timeline—but now they need to show sell-through and margin improvement, especially with promotions already squeezing profitability. If Shein is now pitching investors on roughly a $27 billion valuation, what exactly are they discounting? Is this a judgment on the ultra-fast-fashion model itself, or on the regulatory and operating baggage around it? It looks like all three, not one verdict on whether consumers still want $5 dresses and $10 jeans. Reuters reports the proposed valuation is about 70% below Shein’s private-market peak four years ago, while the company is seeking to raise as much as $1.77 billion in its Hong Kong IPO. Getting to market has been costly, too: according to the BBC, Shein abandoned planned listings in New York and London amid regulatory challenges and scrutiny. China Daily says public investors are assessing an e-commerce model facing slower growth, higher fulfillment costs and tighter rules for low-value parcels. And this is no longer hypothetical: Inside Retail Australia reports Shein posted a $99 million first-quarter net loss, versus a $395 million profit a year earlier, while revenue rose 1.1%. Investors are putting a much lower multiple on a business whose growth, margins and listing access all look less certain than they did at its 2022 peak. So what would actually persuade public-market investors that this is an entry-point discount, rather than a permanent reset in how they value Shein? They need to see Shein return to stronger growth and sustain profitability while absorbing higher fulfillment costs and tougher low-value-parcel rules. Just as important, the Hong Kong debut tests whether investors will accept a global retailer whose earlier U.S. and London listing plans were derailed by regulatory scrutiny. Final IPO pricing and early trading will be the first direct read on that confidence. Retail Technology Innovation Hub, with Scott Thompson:
Swedish startup eComID has announced a $17 million seed round led by Systemiq Capital, with participation from Regeneration.VC, Course Corrected, Stadium and returning investor CapitalT. The funding will go towards international expansion, product and team development. eComID’s Shopping Passport lets shoppers carry relevant context across connected brands, helping each store understand them from the first visit. Vera, the company’s AI shopping agent, combines that context to power sizing intelligence, smart conversational search and personalised product discovery directly on brands' own sites.
A $17 million seed round for a sizing-and-context tool, with COS, Axel Arigato and J.Lindeberg already on the network—that’s a much more useful AI pitch than another chatbot recommending beige trousers. eComID says it reaches 20 million shoppers a month across more than 60 brands, and reports a 30% reduction in returns. If that holds as it expands internationally, that’s real margin recovery, not just a nicer search bar. The passport idea is smart because it skips the fantasy of perfectly simulating every jacket on every body. Vera can use what you’ve already bought, returned, and sized up in across connected brands. Now prove it works when the shopper jumps from COS tailoring to an Axel Arigato sneaker. Systemiq Capital led the round, and the company says the money goes to product, team and new markets. Fine. But the business test is simple: do those 60 partners keep renewal rates up and return costs down once the novelty wears off? Here's Glossy:
NIOD, the 11-year-old skin-care brand from Estée Lauder-owned Deciem, is leveraging its wellness positioning as it enters retail for the first time through a partnership with Sephora. On Monday, the brand hosted a consumer launch activation at Los Angeles Caruso property The Grove that included cold plunges, mini cryotherapy facials, skin assessments, smoothies and sampling, all hosted by American DJ Steve Aoki.
NIOD built its cult on dense ingredient lists and people who actually enjoy reading a label. Now it’s doing cold plunges with Steve Aoki in front of Sephora at The Grove. That is a very deliberate vibe transplant. And it’s a big move: NIOD is entering 200 Sephora stores this month, its first retail partnership in 11 years. Estée Lauder owns Deciem, but shelf space is hard-won right now. An activation with 1,000 visitors isn’t evidence of sustained demand. More than 100 people did the three-minute plunge, great. I’d like the follow-up number: how many walked into Sephora and paid $101 for NIOD after the adrenaline wore off? Exactly. The Ordinary disrupted Sephora with products under $10; NIOD sits at $24 to $101 and says it isn’t a graduation path from The Ordinary. Fine—but the Sephora gondola still has to make that distinction legible without sanding off what made NIOD specific. If you’re enjoying Fashion Business Daily, please subscribe or leave us a review wherever you’re listening. Reviews help people find the show, and your support helps us keep bringing you the latest fashion business news.
Next up, Shein’s final Hong Kong IPO pricing and its first trading sessions will be the next market test.
Links to every story are in the show notes, so take a closer look at whichever developments caught your attention. Thanks for listening. We’ll be back tomorrow. That’s Fashion Business Daily for today. This is a Lantern Podcast.