Sport Minister Gayton McKenzie faces criticism over SHEIN meeting

Zuko Komisa

South African Minister Gayton McKenzie faced severe criticism after meeting with fast-fashion giant SHEIN executives in Singapore.
Critics argue the endorsement of SHEIN, blamed for thousands of job losses, is a betrayal of the struggling local clothing and textile industry.
The Minister defended the engagement as a “pragmatic” move to negotiate better local participation rather than simply protest the firm’s presence.

Minister of Sport, Arts and Culture, Gayton McKenzie, has sparked a significant backlash after photographs of him meeting executives from fast-fashion retailer SHEIN in Singapore emerged.

Critics warn the collaboration could further devastate the nation’s beleaguered textile and fashion industry.

The encounter, which occurred on the side-lines of South Africa Focus Week on 6 October, was intended to explore “potential areas of collaboration” between SHEIN and South Africa’s creative, fashion, and sports sectors, according to an official statement.

The department stated the goal was to empower young designers and athletes.

However, images of Mr McKenzie smiling and shaking hands with company officials quickly ignited fury on social media.

Critics accused the Minister of betraying the struggling domestic textile industry, with many blaming SHEIN and its rival Temu for contributing to the loss of over 8,000 jobs in the South African clothing and textile sector over the past five years.

“We can’t stop Shein from doing business in SA, we can agitate and negotiate for greater participation of local fashion industry. We met them precisely for that reason,” he wrote.

He argued that “staying angry at companies” is not a solution and stressed the value in collaboration, adding that the local industry currently requires “any help” to compete on the global stage, especially as the government collects taxes from such firms regardless.