Temu

Temu launched in September 2022 in Boston as Whaleco Inc., a US-facing subsidiary of Chinese ecommerce group PDD Holdings, built to bring PDD's low-price, direct-from-manufacturer model (proven domestically with Pinduoduo) to Western shoppers.

Temu's stated tagline, 'Team Up, Price Down,' reflects its self-described mission of cutting out retail middlemen so shoppers get manufacturer-direct pricing on everyday goods.

It is a marketplace, not a manufacturer: shoppers browse and buy clothing, electronics, home goods, beauty products, toys, and general merchandise listed by independent sellers and factories, most shipped directly from China.

Temu publishes no sustainability program or environmental report of its own; independent findings are the main source of information here, and they are largely negative. A 2024 Ethical Fashion Report gave Temu a transparency score of 0 out of 100, a US government investigation found a 'very high risk' of forced-labor-linked goods on the platform with no supplier auditing system in place, and reporting on parent PDD Holdings' supply chain has documented worker shifts of up to 380 hours a month, well above China's legal limits.