Meet SHEIN’s New Global Head of Sustainability Mustan Lalani

Fashion brand SHEIN is welcoming a new leader for its sustainability programme.
Mustan Lalani describes himself as a “senior sustainability strategist and corporate affairs leader with 14+ years’ experience in delivering high-impact B2B and B2C sustainability transformation programmes”.
He replaces Adam Whinston, who served as Senior Vice President, Global Head of Sustainability at SHEIN from November 2021 to July 2024.
“Thrilled to step into my new role as Global Head of Sustainability at SHEIN,” Mustan said in a LinkedIn post.
“As one of the world’s largest fashion and retail platforms, and a pioneer in on-demand fashion, SHEIN represents a disruptive model with the potential to drive sustainability at an unparalleled scale.
“My focus will be on embedding circularity, decarbonisation and strategic partnerships into the core of the business.
“The scale and complexity of this challenge are immense, but so is the opportunity to set a new standard for sustainability in the industry.
“The work ahead requires bold ideas, collaboration and action.
“Let’s get to work.”
Sustainability at SHEIN
Fast fashion has a bad reputation when it comes to sustainability and is the third most polluting industry, only behind food and construction.
SHEIN, the world’s largest fast fashion brand, had an estimated US$32.5bn revenue in 2023 and lists between 2,000 and 10,000 new items on its site every day.
The company, which was founded in China in 2008 but has recently overtaken household names like Nike and Zara as the most searched clothes brand, has come under fire from consumers and environmental and human rights groups for unsustainable practices.
A Channel 4 documentary, Inside the Shein Machine, highlighted long working hours where factory workers made hundreds of garments each day, with pay docks for mistakes.
A BBC investigation found that workers are contravening Chinese labour laws with 75-hour work weeks.
In response to the BBC investigation it said it is "committed to ensuring the fair and dignified treatment of all workers within our supply chain”.
SHEIN’s leadership is very committed to developing sustainability
“I believe that there is a lot of opportunity in the fashion industry to improve sustainability at all stages of the value chain,” Adam Whinston said during his tenure as Global Head of ESG at SHEIN.
“SHEIN has already set itself apart from other brands by developing automated supply chain technology to reduce deadstock and inventory waste.
“SHEIN’s leadership is very committed to developing sustainability and social impact programs in every aspect of the business.
“These programmes are not afterthoughts or isolated in their own sector — there’s a high degree of excitement and willingness to implement changes in the business that will create lasting positive impacts on communities and the environment.”
Undeniably, Mustan has his work cut out — and that is before considering the environmental side of the role.
Meet Mustan Lalani
Mustan joins SHEIN after nearly a decade at Tetra Pak.
There, he most recently led Tetra Pak's sustainability transition, strategy and operations in 27 markets in North Europe and East Europe as Sustainability Director, North Europe and East Europe.
His other roles at Tetra Pak included Corporate Affairs Director, Sustainability Strategy and Partnerships and Global Director, Public Affairs — Environment Policy.
Mustan received his degree in Sciences, Actuarial Science and Statistics from the University of Toronto in 2008 and his Global Executive MBA from INSEAD, The Business School for the World, in 2022.
Mustan’s new role sees him leading “the development and execution of a global sustainability strategy focused on circular fashion, decarbonisation and ESG alignment with market and investor expectations”.
This includes partnerships including the company’s €250m (US$262.2m) Circularity Fund, advancing sustainable logistics and supplier solarisation.
“My role bridges innovation and accountability, embedding sustainability into SHEIN’s operations at scale to help shape the future of responsible fashion,” he says.
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