Temu has filed a new lawsuit against Shein accusing its rival of “mafia-style intimidation of suppliers” and copyright concerns, according to a filing on Wednesday.
The Chinese ecommerce giant claimed Shein infringed on its intellectual property rights and falsely imprisoned its merchants, alongside other tactics to stunt its rival’s US growth.
A Temu spokesperson said: “We sued Shein because recently their actions have escalated.
“They began to illegally detain merchants, forcibly asking for their phones, stealing our merchant accounts and passwords, stealing our business secrets, and simultaneously forcing merchants to leave our platform.
“Their actions are too exaggerated; we had no choice but to sue them”.
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The move comes weeks Temu and Shein both dropped their lawsuits related to antitrust and copyright concerns against each other.
The online marketplace was warned about presenting adults as “stereotypical sexual objects” or portraying those under 18 in a sexual manner in the future, after multiple adverts showed “disembodied images of the women wearing tight and revealing clothing”.
Shein has been contacted for comment.
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