Abstract:
Nowadays the Chinese country supports all the world fashion industries with its foreign investments and its buying power. But why aren’t we seeing Chinese fashion brands in shops all over the world? Why is the Chinese fashion industry not at the forefront like the others? Chinese fashion history is not as ancient as the cultural background, it has been facing several obstacles due to government’s policies and it has always been shaped by the two major forces: the state and the market. Until the Open door policy, all the enterprises were state-owned controlled by the central government, they were force to cooperate for the creation of a planned economy. The mono banking system was not supportive since it did not provide the commercial banking activities. The Clothing sector was completely ignored and considered as a non-strategic area without national investment and the process from the raw material to the final product was controlled.
With the Open-Door policy in 1978, the industry sector has seen a huge development characterized by the privatization and SMEs. Also the banking system has undergone a big change with the establishment of the Commercial Banks. Many foreign firms shifted their production in China thanks to its low wages, availability of raw materials, huge pool of workers, helping to transform China in the manufacturing workshop of the world. These new economic changes had great influences on the Chinese creativity, innovation and on its cultural heritage. Thanks to the government incentives and the presence of several associations creative industries are a priority and Chinese industries are moving to narrower tranche of the market.
In the new millennium China is facing several challenges to create its own local brands with a strong 'storytelling' and to spread them in the domestic market, since its current goal is to enter the international market. Although Chinese counterfeiting phenomenon has been relevant a negative factor in the fashion system as well as the global perception of the Chinese goods as low quality products, Asian people have the determination to emerge, create their own brand and to go on a global scale.
In this way China is shifting from clothing manufacturing leader to fashion design production leader.
