Intertextile Shanghai: no signs of slowing down

Just in time for the 20th anniversary edition of the Intertextile Shanghai Apparel Fabrics fair, which took place from 20th to 23rd October, visitor and exhibitor numbers climbed to record heights: 3,844 exhibitors from 30 countries and regions and 71,138 visitors from 93 countries and regions took part in 2014; an increase of 2 and 3 percent, respectively, compared to 2013.

“Both the exhibitor and visitor figures represented new records for the show which was held across 15 halls and 175,020 square metres, making it the largest in the event’s history,” said show organiser Messe Frankfurt. After China, the top 10 visitor countries and regions were Hong Kong, South Korea, Japan, USA, Taiwan, Turkey, Russia, Indonesia, UK and India.

China's textile and apparel industry is booming

“The industry here is definitely booming, and this fair is the only way to get into this market and be known,” said Jose Antonio from Portuguese firm Texser A Textil, which was part of the close to 300 premium suppliers featured as part of SalonEurope this year.

“The reason we keep coming to this fair is because China is a big market and there are many good representatives with potential here,” agreed Raphael Sommer, MD at Hausammann + Moos AG from Switzerland.

Among the special areas, 'Beyond Denim' was spread out for the first time in its own separate hall, which resonated well with denim buyers and suppliers. ‘All About Sustainability’ increased by almost 150 percent due to strong feedback. The 'Educational Zone' featuring the Oeko-Tex Pavilion also attracted interest, with certifiers and testers reporting an increasing demand for their services in China.

Many exhibitors and visitors agreed that Intertextile Shanghai was a "good place to discover new products and ideas". They could take advantage of five international and domestic trend forums, the new GOTS forum, two fabric design competitions, more than 35 seminars and a round table meet about the future of the industry in the region.

Among the special displays and events commemorating the anniversary year were a fashion show, a fabric wall created from fabric swatches of different exhibitors and a celebration video that showed a retrospective of previous editions of the fair.

The next edition of Intertextile Shanghai will be held concurrently with CHIC, China International Fashion Fair, from 18th to 20th March 2015.

Photos: Messe Frankfurt / Intertextile Shanghai Apparel Fabrics – Spring edition