First physical CHIC since the outbreak of the corona pandemic celebrated a successful start

• Successful debut: More than 42,300 visitors at the first GREATER BAY AREAINTERNATIONAL TEXTILE & APPAREL EXPO including CHIC SHENZHEN

• China's economy: Recovery and a growth forecast of 3.2 percent in the second quarter

• Core topics of trade and industry:"Sustainable fashion", "Creative design", "Supply chain construction"

• Service provider CHIC: CHIC ONLINE applet parallel to CHIC's first offline trade fair this   year

A total of 42.374 visitors took the opportunity to see the collections of the more than 2.000 companies at the “Greater Bay Area International Textile and Apparel Expo”, which took place from July 15 to 17, 2020 in Asia's most modern exhibition center, Shenzhen World Exhibition & Convention Center. The fair was organized in compliance with all necessary safety and hygiene measures to prevent any infection. For example, visitors had to register with their ID number, were only allowed to enter with their "green code" app and a travel record and visitors from risky areas had to show evidence of a negative RNA test.

Greater  Bay  Area  International  Textile  and  Apparel  Expo took  place  on  over 80,000  square  meters of  exhibition  space for CHIC  Shenzhen, Intertextile,  Yarn Expo  and  PH  Value.  A  total  of  more  than 2,000  exhibitors presented  the  entire supply  chain  and  comprehensively  showed  the  most  modern  innovations  in  the textile and fashion industry.

Economic activity in China is normalizing again, China's foreign trade grew by 1.5% in June, experts believe growth of more than three percent is possible in the second quarter of the year. Consumer demand is increasing, industrial production and the service sector are gaining momentum again.

"CHIC   Shenzhen exceeded   our   expectations,   especially   under   the   difficult conditions  for  the  preparation  and  implementation  of  the  fair. We  are  very  happy that  we  were  able  to  welcome twice as  many  visitors  as  expected at CHIC. Our buyers  even  came  from Switzerland,  USA,  Germany,  Italy,  UK  and  Russia. Sending  their  representatives  who  are  already  located  in  China  they  managed to keep up their business despite current travel restrictions. The market participants unanimously confirmed how extremely important the meeting on this platform was for the resumption of their business. The need for personal meetings is great, the match making events were used intensively and the workshops and summits were heavily  frequented.  The  market  development  is  positive,  consumer  demand  is increasing, things are going up again. We are confident about the upcoming CHIC events and the market development." Chen Dapeng, President of CHIC and China National Garment Association.

Exhibitors

The collections at CHIC Shenzhen were presented in 13 trade fair segments, including URBAN VIEW (menswear), DENIM WORLD, NEW LOOK (womenswear), HERITAGE (leather & fur), CHIC TAILORING (bespoke),

IMPULSES (designercollections), BAGS & SHOES, SECRETSTARS (accessories), YOUNG BLOOD (young streetwear labels), CHIC KIDZ, FUTURE LINK (new technologies), etc.

In the IMPULSES area, the booth of Chinese luxury lingerie brand MERRIGE, which caused a sensation last year with the eLSi Fashion bridal collection at Milan Fashion Week, was just as much a visitor magnet as the charming collection by designer Cherry Zhuang, who skilfully innovates Western and Eastern aesthetics, connecting these two directions with each other, and who has developed a unique style.

Internationally, at HERITAGE Kopenhagen Fur and Saga Fur were represented and reported successful order activities at CHIC. In the SECRET STARS area, Asiya International Trade presented Indian cashmere scarves and shawls. iGarment, HongKong Fur Factory, Win Seng/VICACCI from Hong Kong were present with their Chinese branches.

Well-known Chinese brands showed in URBAN VIEW like Zhuangchen, Paishi or Nuohua; bespoke companies such as Fashion Dream Works, Oriental International Group or Weidu Textile presented their craftsmanship in the area of CHIC TAILORING; NEW LOOK welcomed companies like Meirenji and Lyn Fong. SIIJII used YOUNG BLOOD again as a platform. In the FUTURE LINK area, i.a. the latest technology for recycled denim fibershas been presented: REPREVE, which can collect whole body data within 20 seconds.

The designerbrand RICOCAO exhibited at CHIC for the first time in the IMPULSES area. RICOCAO is a young brand which was founded by the former head of design of the well known Chinese ladies wear brand Ochirly. “Our aim wasto promote the brand, expand our business channel, and to see if ourproduct is welcomed by the market. CHIC is the platform to meet some front-line franchising buyer's shopsand we have met some promising potential clients. We received a very positive market response and we gained important info for our product development through our talks at CHIC.”(Mrs. Cao Aixia, founder).

SEAGULLVVO, a fashion casual brand, used CHIC to promote their online shop and ODM at the same time. They also already have offline shops in Shenzhen, Hangzhou, Wuhan and other first tier cities. “At CHIC we were able to meet buyers from Northern China.” (Mr. Luo Zheng, General Manager).

Backpack brand Doughnut: “We were surprised about the high number of visitors just  after  the  epidemic  which  shows the  importance  of CHICin  the  market. The influence of CHICis so strong, that attracts many professional visitors. We benefit from the professional match making at the fair. The organizer can introduce clients specifically to us in a very precise way.“ (Ms. Tobey Lin, Sales Manager Mainland China).

Visitors

More  than 42,300 visitors came  to GREATER  BAY  AREA  INTERNATIONAL TEXTILE   &   APPAREL   EXPOin   Shenzhen. For   trade   and   industry, CHIC Shenzhen was one of the first opportunities in China for a face-to-face meeting on a common platform after the lockdown earlier this year.

All  trade  channels  were  represented  at  the  fair,  from  large shopping  mall  and department storegroups such as Wanda Plaza from Beijing with nationwide more than  300 points of  sale  (additional  45  new  plazas  will  be  opened  in  2020),  Liqunfrom Qingdao (Shandong   province), R&F   Global   Merchandise   City   from Guangzhou  (Guangdong  province) with more  than  100 sales  points,  and  multi-brand  boutiques  such  as  Sanfu,  Westlink,  the  Fashion  Door,  or 1  Worto  all relevant online platforms such as JD.com, amazon.cn, Wangyi.com, youzan.com, Ali Express etc.

"We are very happy that CHIC Shenzhenis taking place, here we have the opportunity to get a condensed overview of the offer and to network directly with our customers and exchange information. The personal level plays an important role in our business and we also need to have the products physically in front of us in order to make the right decisions for our target group. We will also go to CHIC in Shanghai at the end of September, where we will have an even bigger offer." (Ms. Huang Zhaohui, General Manager,World Link (Tianjin) Trade Co. Ltd).

"Consumption in China is slowly recovering, consumers are looking for new, fresh products and collections. We are pleased that with CHIC Shenzhenwe have the opportunity to refresh and complement our portfolio. We have found new brands at the  fair  with  which  we  have  concluded  specific  business  deals." (Mr.  Jiang Shixiang, Owner, HanaTebako Boutique).

CHIC Events

CHIC MATCHING

Networking  opportunities  with  key  accounts  from  the  Greater  Bay  Area  were offered by the numerous match making events, which were very well received by exhibitors  and  visitors  alike.  On  the  first  and  second  day  of  the  fair,  this indispensable sales tool was offered to the fashion brands and used by more than 240 exhibitors to network with new customers. More than 23 meetings took place at the fair. Participants such as Exceptional, Gelisi, EACHWAY, MO & CO, Wanda Plaza, the boutique  of  ENJOY,etc. who wanted  to  refresh  and  complement  their portfolio  with  new  styles  and  products,  took  part.  From  abroad,  Swatch  from Switzerland was there with the Chinese branch. International buyers from Italy and Pakistan joined the match making through Tencent Meeting online.

The CHIConline applet enabled visitors who were unable to travel to the fair due to travel restrictions to network online with the exhibitors and view their collections. This tool was used intensively, more than 180,000 clicks and over 14,000 contact requests  were  recorded. Heavily  used  during  CHIC  Shenzhen,  the CHIConline applet continued the success of the first CHIC online fair in April this yearand was able to draw from that experience and build on its technology. An instrument that continues to be offered in parallel to the offline shows.

WORKSHOPS and LECTURE SERIES

FUTURE  was  also  the  topic  of  the  "Create  Tomorrow"  summit,  which  took  place as part of the Greater Bay Area Summit. Together with WWD and China Fashion, the  business  magazine  of  the  industry  under  the  umbrella  of  the  China  National Garment Association, CHICinvited experts from the relevant areas, retail, industry and  design,  to  discuss  future-oriented  topics  for  the  fashion  industry.  All  lectures and discussions were broadcast live.

The  core  topics  of  the  workshop  series  were  urgent  content  for  the  fashionindustry: "Sustainable fashion" on the first day of the fair, "Creative design" on the second and "Supply chain construction" on the third day.

The  summit  location,  designed  by  CHIC  x  COLORO  X  WGSN,  was  at  the  same time trend area and inspired participants with current color trends of the season.

All lectures and discussions were heavily frequented. The need for information and exchange  is  immense.  The  Chinese  fashion  industry  is  at  a  new  stage  of development,  and  the  current  global  situation  has  given  it  a  major  boost.  During this  time,  the  companies  have  pushed  ahead  with  the  development  of  new technologies so that they can remain on the market and position themselves in a future-oriented manner.

Next dates CHIC, China International Fashion Fair:

CHIC Shanghai, September 25-27, 2020, National Exhibition & Convention Center

CHIC Shanghai, March 10-12, 2021, National Exhibition & Convention Center