As the largest apparel exporter in the world, China manufactures products for big international brand names. The clothing industry in Shenzhen, with the advantage in women's clothing designs, accounts for more than 70 percent of domestic sales. More than 80 international brands have their products manufactured in Shenzhen. In 2006, the production value of Shenzhen's clothing industry reached 120 billion yuan, up 93 percent from a year earlier, and earned US$10.6 billion from exports to more than 190 countries and regions, up 150 percent year on year.
When the Shenzhen Special Economic Zone was first established, manufacturing and exports were the main production mode of the city's clothing industry, with advanced equipment and technology compared with other Chinese cities, but few own brand names. After the clothing companies and fashion designers realized the shortcoming, they began to pursue Shenzhen's own brands. Now, building their own brands has become the common goal of Shenzhen's clothing companies.
Over the past eight years starting from 2000, apparel brands and fashion designers have mushroomed in Shenzhen and the city has gradually become the production base of women's clothing in China. There are more than 3,200 apparel companies in Shenzhen and more than 50 of them have an annual production value exceeding 100 million yuan. More than 30,000 fashion designers work for about 800 domestic brands, with 800 of them being famous on the Chinese market. More than 75 percent of Shenzhen's clothing companies allocate 5 percent to 15 percent of their sales revenue as their research funds, and 69.2 percent of the research funds was used to design new products.
Major Chinese cities purchase a large quantity of apparel from Shenzhen every year and women's clothing designed by Shenzhen designers is most popular. In shopping centers and large malls in Beijing, Shanghai, Chengdu and Dalian, more than 70 percent of the middle and high-end clothing are Shenzhen-designed brands. Compared with brand names of other Chinese cities, Shenzhen's clothing designs are thought to be more fashionable.
With the advantage of its proximity to Hong Kong, Shenzhen fashion designers can keep up with the latest trends on the international market. A great number of fashion designers go to France, Italy, Japan and Britain to further their studies. The large number of brand names provides opportunities for fashion designers to introduce innovation. More than 30,000 fashion designers often take part in exhibitions and competitions and bring back a respectable number of awards. Luo Zheng and Liang Zi have won Chinese fashion industry's top award, the Golden Crown Award, and have become China's top fashion designers. Dozens of other designers have also created their own fashion brand names.
In 2001, Shenzhen held the First China (Shenzhen) International Brand Clothing & Accessories Fair and the fair has become an annual event and the second-largest apparel exhibition in China. During each fair, there is a national fashion design competition, which propelled the development and promotion of fashion design. During the fair last year, China's first apparel commercial association was set up, with the aim of helping small and medium clothing companies to expand. Fashion designers from France, Japan and South Korea come to the fair to exhibit their works each year.
In 2003, Shenzhen Garment Industry Association launched the Shenzhen International Fashion Week. During each fashion week, fashion designers make their names and Shenzhen becomes a city of fashion, with fashion boutiques showing newly designed products and fashion shows being staged every day in the Creative Park, shopping areas and exhibition centers.
In 2004, Shenzhen began to build an apparel production base, to serve as an integral center for high-tech and new product research and development; manufacturing and processing; logistics; exhibition and sales; and staff training. By making good use of land resources, improving the investment environment for clothing companies and establishing a trading platform, the production base has created a favorable environment and apparel culture, boosting the core competitive forces of Shenzhen's clothing industry and promoting it to a higher level.
In 2005, Shenzhen set up China's first fashion design research center, employing digital technology to create new designs and develop new materials. The center is by far the most advanced and largest public technology platform in China.
Shenzhen's clothing industry is marching ahead in the direction of a "headquarters economy," and during the process of building itself into a "City of Design," will gradually become a capital-intensive, technology-intensive and knowledge-intensive modern industry. Large clothing companies began to set up headquarters and design and sales centers in Shenzhen and expand to the international market with the help of Shenzhen's advantages in fashion design.
