Consumer boycott of foreign apparel brands in China have dipped fashion retailer H&M’s sales in the country in recent months. China is one of the biggest markets for Stockholm-based H&M and accounting for 5 per cent sales last year -- one of its two biggest purchasing sources -- has been singled out in particular. The company was wiped off from e-commerce platform Tmall and store locations from mobile phone maps in China, while its app has vanished from local app stores.
Some researchers and foreign lawmakers say Xinjiang authorities use coercive labour programs to meet seasonal cotton-picking needs, which China strongly denies. In March 2021, Chinese consumers and social-media users, including the Central Communist Youth League, excoriated H&M, accusing it of smearing China and calling for a boycott, after its September 2020 statement resurfaces in social media. On the same day, searches for H&M on Chinese e-commerce platforms were blocked.