why do brands keep doing these crazy influencer trips?? 

listening to a tiktok girlie talk about her school shooting experience using the influencer voice while peddling skincare will never not fill me with a feeling of hollow dread. what in the dystopia is this.

the strangest part of the Shein content is multiple influencers saying they expected the factories to be dark, crowded and dangerous...then girl, why did you agree to go???

Shein was the most baffling brand trip ever, they picked smaller influencers who were more easily manipulated

Bruh, I work for a telecom company and I can’t even accept a $20 Starbucks gift card. The fact that Supreme Court justices accept lavish trips and don’t disclose them is WILD to me

girl when you went in on the supreme court as influencers i was giggling and kicking my feet like you got their asses

Growing up, my dad worked in advertising. I understand how young influencers may be happy with "a free trip", but a free trip does not pay your bills. And brands should know that. Sometimes a brand would offer my dad free x for the advertising, and when he refused, they would criticize him for wanting money instead. Dude, he had kids who needed food, clothing and a house. We did not need a free trip to the local amusement park.

These trips also promote unhealthy tourist habits and they absolutely influence their audiences in this as well. They aren’t really traveling to get a world experience and end up not contributing to the communities they are visiting (brands do this) then all of the influencers time is spent promoting products instead of enjoying the place they are in or trying to go outside the comfort of the resort. Tarte was all about the Amazon! Like it’s so disconnected for reality and it’s mindless tourist consumer behavior.

The Shein trip was so funny. Why any influencer would think it was a good idea baffles me considering their track record of labour abuse.

Fast fashion companies just now diversifying their influencer/partner base as they are drawing massive criticism is very much giving the concept of the glass ceiling, where women are being put in leadership positions in failing companies so that the blame lands on them instead of previous leaders

it literally seems like a joke when shes like "i'm traumatized by surviving a skool shuting and that's why I use biore"

I think Dani may have gotten the most heat because of her egregious “You know me, ‘she’s an investigative journalist!’” line. When there are ACTUAL investigative journalists writing on the rampant human rights violations Shein is responsible for, it’s laughably stupid for an influencer to compare herself to the ones doing the real work, especially if she’s going to fly in the face of the actual EVIDENCE OF ABUSE 🙄

When that former social media manager said they got a lot of those things for free, hotel stays, food, and sometimes flights... SOMEONE is paying for that. It may not be monetary. But if so, the money to afford the all of this is coming from somewhere. Wage theft is just one example where that money can come from. Employees not getting raises because the budget could have been cut from there to make room for marketing partnerships with influencers. Nothing is ever actually free.

Ok but the thumbnail absolutely SENT me. Picturing Clarence Thomas as an influencer on a brand trip really helps take some of the sting out of seeing our democracy crumble before my eyes.

Oh god that apology video GRWM. Curling her hair, the soulless smile, and going "I'm sorry you felt that way, but I got so many nice messages look at how much people love me!!"

That ad with the school shooting message was very hard to watch. Out of touch completely - Wow. I think brand trips are also out of touch in this time. I get it, sales, money blah blah... but its really cringey. Thanks for talking about this girl. :)

Another argument is that SHEIN is too cheap not to abuse their workers. It is simply impossible that SHEIN pays and treats their workers well when the clothes are as cheap as they are.

“I went to China and talked to Chinese people I know everything about Shein and China now” -influencers that went on this trip

I will never forget how badly I wanted to go on a tarte bora bora trip😒💔

Anyone notice all these influencers come from wealth? They're just doing what rich people have done for centuries; wearing expensive clothes and hanging out and getting even richer from it. Their jobs are just being thin and pretty and rich.

I think that influencer that blew up with the Shein trip kinda gained the most attention 'cus a phrase she said about "being a free thinker" and "doing her own research" which sounded really confrontative in a context where a lot of critics consider themselves much more informed than her. On the other hand the other influencers did a lot of promotion an propaganda for the brand without sounding so confrontative towards critics.

It's interesting that most of the influencers going on these trips are young women. It seems like another example of the age-old idea that women, especially women of color, should provide unpaid labor in society. The people who expect this never directly say, "We are going to exploit you." They will make it seem like a fabulous opportunity that all women should aspire to, the same way marriage was marketed to women in the past. I will be curious to see how these influencers view these experiences as they get older and wiser. As someone who used to work in the performing arts, one lesson I learned the hard way was, do not agree to perform for "exposure!" This is code for "I want you to work for free." Due to patriarchy, it can be uncomfortable for young women to say, "My work is valuable, and if you want me to spend my time doing labor for you, even going on a luxury trip, then I need a contract and you need to pay me." These companies, consciously or unconsciously, are aware of this and they are exploiting this vulnerability for their own benefit.

I think she was the most criticized creator because she calls herself an “investigative journalist” and “prides herself on questioning the status quo”.

Your wardrobe must be such a fun place, the range of clothes and styles it accommodates is everything. The individuality 🤌🏽

I’m a us size 18/20. I’ve been fat my whole life, I understand the struggle, especially since most brands plus sizes max out around my size. At the same time I don’t think that’s a very good excuse for an influencer, who does not NEED to shop at SHEIN, to take a brand trip with them. She also tried to claim she wanted to destigmatize buying fast fashion for people who can’t afford much else. Yeah, people who are financially struggling should be allowed to buy clothes from wherever and not be criticized, but Dani isn’t one of them!

The part that rubbed me the wrong way the most about the Dani thing is that she basically hid behind that she’s a fat influencer. She kept saying that Shein partnering with her was a big deal because she’s fat and other companies wouldn’t. That made me so mad!! I’m a fat person and it’s so gross for her to be like “it’s okay to stoop to human right violations because I’m fat and therefore less than.” I follow so many other fat influencers that would never do that!

One of the most odd and awkward brand trip vlogs I saw by a TikToker was this fancy luxurious cluster of tropical cabins right in the heart of an impoverished farm plantation where very poor workers were directly outside their shower cabin which had a giant window overlooking the plantation fields. The influencer was like "Wow The workers are literally right outside the shower window! That's weird." There was also another building in the same field with a mini brand store with their products. It was such an immense clash of classes on a whole a other level. The influencer was actually a genuinely nice person, but that video was really not a great look. I don't think I personally would've narrated the trip the way they did, but this is still such truly strange new territory for everyone.

27:17 OH MY GOD THANK YOU. As soneone who sews for a living, I have BEEN saying this since i heard those tiktoks. The technology statement was made by at least 2 of the influencers and it infuriated me because machines. Cannot. Sew. The only automation that can happen is perhaps to move garments along the assembly line faster, and other efficient management tools. But not. Sewing, cutting, hemming, any if that. Your average joe, jane, or jay likely doesn't know that sewing cannot be automated. Other creators who have touched on the shein brand trip discourse did not mention this, so THANK YOU!!! PEOPLE, WITH HANDS AND HEARTS AND FEELINGS, ARE SEWING ALL OF YOUR CLOTHES. And they deserve to be treated fairly, and compensated for their work.

I work in PR and let me tell you, we LOVE watching these fails as great exampled of what NOT to do lol

Idaho warning for people of colour: the nature in Idaho is indeed pretty, but there are a lot of open and aggressive racists. You’ll be fine in Boise, but take care in wandering off beaten the path. Avoid the Hayden lake area and the Idaho-Washington border area. Spokane Valley is particularly awful. If nature is what you want, I recommend the western side of Washington State, the Oregon Coast or Montana/Yellowstone.

The gun violence x Biore campaign is so so so dystopian like??Wtf????

I recognize one of the "influencers" from the shein trip, Kenya she was a designer in project runway, you'd think shed be more educated about production and not supporting a brand that steals from small designers constantly

With the Dani/ SheIn thing, I think she's went viral because her tone in her vids came off holier than thou and "EYE do my research and y'all are just xenophobic followers" she insinuated that we just believe these things because we're idiots which is messed up

To put some context on the F1 race, race weekends actually comprise of 5 races. Friday has 2 practice races, and Saturday had 1 practice and 1 qualifying race. The qualifying race determines your place on Sunday, which is the main race day. Bria got invited to the Friday and Saturday races but not the Sunday one. Unfortunately, F1 has become a hotbed for influencers, so there’s a lot of people who are not really into motor racing and have no idea what’s going on using these races as social media/clout opportunities. I think that’s what happened with Tarte. I feel like there’s a 50% chance they didn’t know that all the races weren’t the same, because it never seemed like this brand cared about motor racing. But I feel like there could also be a chance that Tarte’s leadership is out of touch with reality and their CEO has had multiple instances of being problematic. It’s all super annoying to fans who’ve been watching F1 for years because these influencer trips are one of the reasons why F1 has gotten so expensive.

re: the thought that influencer trips don't cost as much: the woman said the *magazine* wasn't paying for things because they were free, but they surely cost the hotels they were partnering with, the restaurants, etc. and what happens with the workers? the people who provide the food? that magazine (and potentially other brands) choose countries ravaged by tourism where a majority of the population lives under the poverty line. there is a cost associated with those brand trips that goes unaccounted for indeed. It's like the old adage, "nothing in life is free." When it comes to trips like these, I agree Shine on, Mina Le! 🤩

As Someone who lives in and loves Idaho, hearing someone say its their favorite state is so strange to me because people NEVER talk about idaho let alone say its their favorite state

I am a born and raised idahoan and it is very beautiful here but It’s not an ideal place for anyone who isn’t white, cis, and straight. Truly unfortunate

Speaking to the SHIEN thing, and how difficult it is to *actually* fully automate clothing production, I watched an interesting video about the engineering of the James Webb space telescope recently (I swear this is going somewhere), and something that stood out to me was just how difficult it was to design its massive sun shield, purely because it was made from a very high tech fabric and would unfold like a giant kite when it got to space. However, even after all kinds of testing and reinforcement and calculations, they still basically just had to pray that it would unfold correctly when it launched because soft body physics are just that unpredictable. In other words, engineers at *NASA* have a difficult time building a mechanism to manipulate *one* single flat piece of soft material, in *zero gravity,* with *no air resistance.* Can you imagine how much more infinitely complex a machine that churns out t-shirts on its own would be to engineer? And how unreliable it’d be to operate? It’s no wonder that companies choose to just exploit people in countries with lax labour laws instead. Frankly, it’s disgusting to see SHIEN show the one single part of the process (in this case, cutting out pieces) that CAN be automated and pretend that it represents a revolutionary new process, and isn’t just a regular cutting machine that’s been the industry standard for decades.

the bioré clip is crazy to me. while i agree with the message per se, it is bizarre to me to use it to sell pore clearing strips 😂 Like what, it wouldn't have happened if those kids had clearer skin?

i only found out about dote during their fallout for not being diverse enough, i binge watched all the stories of the black girls on these trips and how they were isolated :(

I feel like the marketing lady talking about how the brand trips are "more affordable than you think" was completely missing the point.

I had to go into my PayPay account yesterday, and I looked at the "Deals" section. I noticed that there was a pretty sizable discount on Tarte in there, and I cynically thought, "Oh, I wonder what's going on with them."

Thanks to you, I can finally clean my room

I was already prepared for the Shein Brand trip to be the worst of the ones described but knowing that it happened in my hometown kind of makes me feel even worse, in a very personal way. Like, the words gross or sick doesn't even begin to describe it. The fact that one of the bases of operation for Shein is literally exploiting people from what feels like my own community, and then have that grossly be on display as "content" to be digested by the masses and promoting them... I just feel really sick to my stomach. And also knowing that these brand trips almost never respect the locations they visit either, and that the people they invited will never get to see the real Guangzhou, the one that I intimately know... It just hurts me a lot. Sorry this got too personal...

That Shein trip was crazy but the blandly talking about a school shooting for a skincare ad was a bleak look at the direction we are heading. Won’t do what we have to do to actually stop them from happening, so let’s just monetize it

There needs to be a horror influencer vacation 😏

I think the one woman on the shein brand trip got the most flack because of how she called herself an "investigative journalist" but then not really doing any critical investigation just talking about the top-level view that the company showed her

I love how informed you keep me! I saw all this go down on twitter but didn’t take the time to really investigate the issue. For example, didn’t realized how predatory SHEIN was for picking the influencers they did (underrepresented POC and + sized ppl). Not only that, but how the shift to sustainability from fast fashion has affected what brand deals are considered good partnerships nowadays. Great video as always!

I think that the island trope or isolation trope is very Agatha Christie’s 10 Little Indians which has its own complex history. It is a way to create a fishbowl environment so the audience as the observers watch the rats eat each other.

Mobilizing Gen Z's fixation with """Mental Health Awareness""" as an advertising tactic to sell beauty products is so insane, and also so very very predictable, lmao. Like if they put that Biore ad in a satirical movie/show about the shallowness of the "movements" of today, it would feel too on-the-nose and overdone. That influencer showing off her cute workout clothes and fit body while rotely reciting a script about anxiety and a freaking SCHOOL SHOOTING, to then reveal a trite hashtag product slogan tying it all back to the stigma of mental illness, was like a punch to the face.

Shein's crossed from "commercial" to "propaganda" and I'm mostly just baffled anyone involved thought it was a good idea/would work. I don't have an issue with brand trips as a general thing - obviously some came with issues - as they're basically just a commercial, but that one was wild.

Aside from the racist and problematic aspects of treating differently some of the influencers that these brands invited, from a marketing point of view, HOW did they ever think this was a smart idea? How could they think nobody would notice? Even if the influencers didn't talk about it, you could just compare the videos and the differences are obvious, I really don't understand how nobody said "But won't people realize it's different, considering it's being filmed?"

my favourite quote from the shien tiktoks was when one of the influencers was like it can't be a sweatshop, they're not even sweating like omg

i remember when the bulk of videos talking about these influencer trips were about the racism experienced. it honestly was just a shock seeing how many denied what was happening, and it really sucked having to see all these people experience being left out or just outright being treated badly.

There's a huge side of this that takes place between med companies, private doctors and insurances. If you feel that all dermatologists suddently are pushing the same brands (in my experience this was insane when looking for severe acne treatments) ignoring other cheaper products that work the same or have extremelly similar ingredients for no apparent reason it's really not just a feeling.

You didn't just hit us with THE TOXIC GOSSIP TRAIN again 😂💀

I think the tropical locations for reality tv has a lot to do with wearing less clothes

I don't know if this is still the case, but about a decade ago it was fairly common for video game reviewers to get flown out to fancy locations for a preview/early access review event. Brand trips for gamer guys, lol.

I love the little life checks mina does at the start of her videos

amazing video! so rare to find youtubers justifiably criticizing brands. this was refreshing to watch ❤

Oh how I remember those collabs back then. Great video, and I hope you enjoy your trip Mina!

As usual, you have us accustomed to utter excellence with your research topics. Thank you, Mina!! It's so important to shine an empathetic and realistic light on issues so intentionally manipulated and obscured.

I drove through Idaho on a road trip last month and it was GORGEOUS. Definitely underrated. I stopped in the town Napoleon Dynamite was filmed too, fun time 😆

This video is soooooo perfect thank you so much (and OMG you're GORGEOUS in the sponsor section of the video, ur always gorgeous but idk the shots are beautiful)

*I'm Kenyan, most of our fast fashion products are marked Made in India or Made in Bangladesh for clothes or Made in China for other things.* One thing, the 500 articles per person isn't the complete piece but a step in it. Second thing, they're dead end soul crushingly jobs that go nowhere. I literally know people in the exact same _everything_ outside time passing from when I was a small girl seeing them go to these places. They literally dress the same, talk the same, walk the same route to work or live in the same slum. My heart breaks every time I see someone young go into these factories. Third thing, those wages do make sense for us. They are poor wages but still living wages. Fourth thing, the reason the factory is so pristine is because they went in between shifts, the best time for such an event. Nothing nefarious was happening. Fifth thing, those machines are not state of the art lol. They're industrial, people really need to learn. Last thing, the West needs to learn a lot more about the rest of the world and our labor practices. A lot of this hate does seem "bleeding hesrt liberal" from this side. I remember a few years ago my aunt lost a job just because white kids were crying about "children in sweat shops." Most of these be better campaigns I come across are always making life worse for those factory workers you insist are exploited.

the most interesting influencer trip I've seen this year is not gonna mean a lot to the younger viewers, but I found it really really interesting. The owners of Officine Universelle Buly, a luxury candle and toiletry brand from France, invited a large group of influencers that are more in their 40s+ that do "French lifestyle" vlogging to their chateau for a week, my god the place was absolutely gorgeous and yet still felt lived in and like a home, and one of the activities they did was work in the chateau garden where some of the ingredients for the products are sourced, lol, like in their gift bag before they went was personalized wellies, gardening shears, and gardening gloves, lol, like super super high end, but I thought it was a little funny, until you realize what they were for, they were also gifted candles and toiletries and combs and brushes and stuff too that were personalized when they got there. Honestly, maybe I'm getting too old, but I'd prefer an influencer trip like that one, lol

As an Idaho resident, I can understand why visiting would be fun. But living here full-time is another story. 😅

Your videos are always so well and carefully made. Thank you for your great work!

Liquor companies do trips for bartenders and bar managers. Has been going on for at least 15 years. Liquor companies also did a boxing event a few years ago and there’s even an org called BBO, bartender boxing organization. It’s funny when I see things happening on social media with influencers that bartenders have also benefited from for years but with a different product, booze.

We need a wardrobe tour soon Mina!!

I was obsessed with your Idaho photos last time! Your video was awesome!

That Biore add with that upbeat music "with countless anxiety attacks to locking myself in my room" "get it all out from your pores to your trauma" obscene.

I'm watching this after watching Swell's video on it a week ago or so....the part that i found irritating just like Amanda did was that Dani stated like she was a professional "investigative journalist" with years of experience at getting "the real story" and how this trip genuinely showed the "truth" based off what the Shein workers/officials told her (regardless if it was true) and what she was shown in this manufacturing building.

I was actually just thinking about this topic because Linda Sun whom i adore, yesterday posted a video about her Love Bonito sponsored trip to Singapore and i was not feeling her sponsoring a brand that isn't sustainable or transparent about their labouring practices 😑

I recently noticed a lot more brand trips across all sorts of different types of influencers. There were a few big brand trips for cleaning products where they invited a bunch of cleantok influencers, there was the fashion brand trips, ect. In the past year I have noticed the amount of brand trips and PR boxes increase a lot. Maybe more people are being encouraged to be vocal about them or something. It reminds me of the earlier days of YT influencers and all the big brand deals (like the Ford Fiesta challange) and brand trips and tons of PR boxes. Parts of it died down for a while but it seems to be ramping up again.

Thank you Mina, always love your insights

For me, as an f1 fan, the tarte trip to miami was problematic because A LOT of women become fans of f1 nowadays and have to deal with a lot of misogyny from male fans. These influencers don't have to deal with that and only show interest for 5 minutes to take photos/stories. Many fans would sell their soul to attend a race but simply don't have the money, while these girls got this amazing opportunity and don't have any idea how lucky they are.

Tarte brand trips has got be money laundry, there's no other explanation tbh 😂

The school shooting survivor went to where I go. I am also a school shooter survivor and I was on campus near where it happened. She wasn’t there. I cannot imagine profiting off of that tragedy this way

your videos cheer me up so much. thanks for your work

I am greatful that people like you are discussing this issue. I love your educated takes, thank you for informing me about these things. I don’t use social media very often but I am disgusted by Shein and I try my best to share your videos when i do go on social media 😊

I’m from idaho and was so low key excited to hear Mina say she loves it here lmao

Always quality content! Also, your makeup look for this is the cutest.

Thank you for the Where 2 Shop link. I'm really excited to check it out as a resource.

Love this breakdown, and just one more reminder that the *most* sustainable thing we can do is simply stop consuming. If you have to have something, get it used/swap with friends.

I like how you call Shein the "final boss" of fast fashion.

i AM IN LOVE WITH YOU!!! YOUR VOCAB IS SO DAMN GOOD AND THE WAY YOU SPEAK??? LOVEEEEE 💗

A friend of mine criticized tarte for the brand trips given their eco/natural theme, especially in their early years, and they blocked her!

Seeing mina up close without makeup was a scare jump in a "I just saw an angel" type of way, I feel like my soul was cleansed, my taxes paid, got a well paying job, I knew she was pretty but she's above pretty what the heck

Thank you Mina, for another informative and beautiful video

My research found Destene and Brandon as on of the channels involved in the Shein backlash? I couldn't find channel names for those involved. These were difficult topics to discuss and you did so with grace! Thanks for sharing your insight and knowledge of the industry.

Mina never disappoints with her dressing 🔥

Im planning to do a zine about fast fashion and brands, i’ll probably quote this video (and the sources) in that. So thank you Mina as always 🖤 Also these days i’m reading the last part of No Logo by Naomi Klein (the “no global bible”, before the no global movement was destroyed by my country’s police brutality) and it’s crazy to see the process she was talking about 20 years ago taking us to THIS. I wonder what she thinks rn about all of this, the presence of brands is SO pervasive we barely notice and things like the school shooting tiktok are possible. This is complete madness and we normalised it.

idaho is SO underrated, it’s also my favorite vacation spot, glad u understand 💗💗💗

Loved the input at the end- very intresting!

Also that girlie talking about how the trip was “actually affordable because we didn’t pay for most of it” def doesn’t negate the actual dollar value of the trip. Like oh it was so cheap because we didn’t get charged for the hotel room! Girl what, that didn’t mean it was 0$ value

26:13 Wow how sad the influencer didn’t realize that the person employing these Chinese workers in a sweatshop obviously instructed them to lie

thank u for adding subtitles!!!! ^^

hii Mina, I love your videos 🫶 you inspire me so much Lots of love

I think for me my issue with people ordering on Shein is that it’s all online. Obviously H and M isn’t the best company, however they do have physical stores and my own sister works at an H and M store. She has told me it has been the best job she has ever had. She gets decent pay (above the minimum wage in my location). She has fair hours especially considering she is a student. She can always get time off. She got proper training for all aspects of the job, and her coworkers have all work at that H/M for at least a year. Some have even been working there since that H/M opened in my town around 5ish years ago. So it can be the teeniest tiniest bit easier for me to shop at H/M because I know at least some of their employees are treated well and fairly. With Shein I have no idea how any of their employees are treated and being that they don’t have physical stores all I know about are the factories and not one person seems to have a fair life there. It can be so hard deciding which company to support, as it’s almost impossible to find one that is ethical, sustainable, and affordable. I’m a broke college student who sometimes needs business wear, and while I try my hardest to buy second hand sometimes I can’t find a pencil skirt in my size. So I have to turn to H/M. I suppose what I’m trying to say is, in todays climate of the world you have to pick your battles and remember how much you can give, it’s an easy fight for me to not shop at Shein but it is a difficult battle thinking about spending my whole two weeks pay check on one one skirt for an interview.

Have fun on your trip !