BRITISH prime minister Boris Johnson on Tuesday (19) singled out Mumbai-headquartered pharmaceutical and biotech company Wockhardt for praise among companies behind the country’s successful Covid-19 vaccine rollout.
During his speech at the Global Investment Summit at London Science Museum, Johnson said Wockhardt’s Wales-based bottling plant was instrumental in ensuring the vaccination programme was a success.
“When you look at the lightning speed of the vaccine rollout there were all sorts of things that made it possible… in Wales, I’m proud to say, we had the bottling plant that made it all possible,” Johnson told an audience of leading global business chiefs and entrepreneurs.
“Wockhardt, an Indian company, from Mumbai, whose family motto was work hard. Hence wock hardt. And it was the hard wock of those companies, of Wockhardt and their staff, that made it possible,” he said.
The UK government last year struck a deal with the Wockhardt plant, based in Wrexham in North Wales, for its fill-and-finish line to bottle millions of coronavirus vaccine doses.
The Mumbai-headquartered company has been among the largest suppliers to the NHS and its unit in Wrexham employs hundreds of people at a high-tech manufacturing facility.
The Global Investment Summit in London attracted leading investors to showcase British innovation and promote the UK as the best investment destination in the world.
Shein’s UK sales hit £2.05bn in 2024, up 32.3 per cent year-on-year, driven by younger shoppers.
The retailer benefits from import tax loopholes unavailable to high street rivals.
Faces mounting criticism over labour practices and sustainability as it eyes a London listing.
Tax edge drives growth
Chinese fashion giant Shein is transforming Britain’s online clothing market, capturing a third of women aged 16 to 24 while benefiting from tax breaks unavailable to high street rivals.
The fast-fashion retailer’s UK sales surged 32.3 per cent to £2.05bn in 2024, according to company filings, with pre-tax profits rising to £38.3m from £24.4m the previous year. The growth comes as established players like Asos struggle in an increasingly competitive landscape where young consumers prioritise value above all else.
Shein has partly benefited from a tax break on import duty for goods worth less than £135 sent directly to consumers, The rule lets overseas sellers send low-value goods to the UK tax-free, disadvantaging local businesses.
“The growth of Shein and Temu is a huge factor,” said Tamara Sender Ceron, associate director of fashion retail research at Mintel told The Guardian. “It is particularly successful among younger shoppers. It is also a threat to other fashion retailers such as Primark and H&M because of its ultra-low price model that nobody can compete with. It’s changed the market.
"The market dynamics reflect broader shifts in consumer behaviour. Online fashion sales reached £34bn last year, up 3 per cent, according to Mintel, but shoppers have become more cautious as disposable incomes shrink, and fashion competes with holidays, festivals, and streaming services for wallet share.
Scrutiny builds
Despite its commercial success, Shein faces mounting scrutiny. The company filed initial paperwork last June for a potential London Stock Exchange listing, but critics question its labour practices and environmental impact.
"Regardless of whether Shein gets listed on the London Stock Exchange, no company doing business in the UK should be allowed to play fast and loose with human rights anywhere in their global supply chains,” said Peter Frankental, economic affairs programme director at Amnesty International UK to BBC.
The “de minimis” rule has drawn renewed attention after US President Donald Trump scrapped a similar measure during his trade war with China.
Shein’s UK operation now employs 91 people across offices in Kings Cross and Manchester, focusing primarily on local market expertise.
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