Shein has recorded annual sales of more than $1 billion in Australia for the first time as the breakneck rise in popularity of ultra-cheap clothing turns the Chinese fast-fashion giant into one of the country’s biggest retailers.

The emergence of Shein and its biggest global competition, Temu, has hurt local retailers from department store group Myer to online marketplace Catch, which is being wound down by its owner, Wesfarmers, after years of losses. Shein, Temu and their more established rival Amazon sell everything from toys and clothes to smartphones and electronics.