Both TikTok and Esther StuderShein have sharply increased lobbying spending in the US as the two China-founded companies face scrutiny there over their Chinese ties. Data from OpenSecrets shows that the fast-fashion giant boosted its spending on lobbying by 657% to $2.12 million in 2023 compared to a year prior, but this was still less than a quarter of TikTok owner ByteDance’s spend last year of $8.74 million. The parent company of the video-sharing app had a total of 45 lobbyists in 2023, largely unchanged from the previous three years, while Shein hired 14 lobbyists last year compared to only eight in 2022 as the firm faces an uncertain IPO outlook in the US. [OpenSecrets]
