With three Intertextile Apparel editions in Shanghai and Shenzhen already completed since the pandemic brought in-person trade fairs to a halt in early 2020, clear trends are emerging about the apparel industry, the Chinese market rebound and the importance of in-person trade fairs to assist in business recovery.

What’s changed in the industry?

• Quality over quantity and a demand for new, unique products are the stand-out changes from the past year.

• Accompanied by an increased popularity for pandemic-related products such as anti-bacterial, hygiene-focused and sustainable fabrics and solutions, the Chinese market has observed several shifts since the start of the pandemic, providing greater opportunities for suppliers.

Fairgoers at the latest Spring Edition in March this year observed high footfall, numerous enquiries and orders, along with an overall optimism of the market’s rebound. The overriding feeling that the textile industry is recovering and progressing in China dominated conversations at the fair amongst the nearly 2,600 exhibitors and 80,000-plus buyers.

Mr Tianzhong Dong, Vice President, Hua Mao Nano-Tech (Shanghai) AN Office, China:

“Because of the pandemic, anti-bacterial, anti-virus and other health concepts are popular. Also, environmental protection is certainly a hot topic, including recycled, sustainable and organic products. I think China's demand for interesting and unique products moves very fast.”

Mr Hui Zhang, Regional Sales Manager, Beijing Vitality Textiles Co Ltd, China:

“Buyers want to come to this fair to see what’s new. We have noticed more people will order small quantities. They will also order more patterns, brands and categories. In terms of consumer trends, people are now paying more attention to functional fabrics, such as anti-bacterial and sustainable products, which I think will prove to be even more popular in the future.”

Ms May Wu, Fabric Purchaser, CPAX Ltd, China:

“As the industry is paying more attention to regenerated, natural, eco-friendly and protective products, I also observed that more suppliers at Intertextile are beginning to invest in sustainable products. I think these trends are bound to be the future direction of China’s market.”

Ms Rosalyn Chen, Area Manager, Sidogras S.A., Spain:

“Right now all eyes are on China as it is undergoing quick recovery from the pandemic. I’m very impressed with the visitor flow here, and we’ve been in contact with over 160 clients so far. Given the huge prospects in the domestic market, we have already signed up for the Shanghai and Shenzhen Editions of Intertextile later this year.”

Ms Jing Ren Li, Department Head, R&D Textile Co Ltd, Korea:

“The number of visitors is higher than last September and overall our booth has proved more popular too, so we have certainly seen a rebound of customers. So much so that we are expecting our domestic sales to have increased by about 30 – 40% compared to last year.”

Mr Jackal Tsang, Regional Sales, Orta Anadolu, Turkey:

“The market in China picked up quite quickly after the disruptions last year, we noticed recovery and rebound in the market around May 2020. This is why we’ve become more focused on the domestic market over the past year.”

Mr Yonghui Zheng, Manager, Shanghai IRIS Garment Accessories Co Ltd, Japan:

“We didn’t have very high expectations for this edition because of the pandemic, but our booth had an estimated 300-plus visitors yesterday, so we are very happy. Intertextile Apparel is very effective for promoting our brand.

• Intertextile Shanghai Apparel Fabrics – Autumn Edition will take place alongside Intertextile Shanghai Home Textiles – Autumn Edition, Yarn Expo Autumn, CHIC and PH Value, from 25 – 27 August 2021 at the National Exhibition and Convention Center (Shanghai). Intertextile Shenzhen Apparel Fabrics will run from 3 – 5 November 2021 at the Shenzhen World Exhibition & Convention Center, concurrently with Yarn Expo Shenzhen, CHIC and PH Value.