A leading sourcing summit Intertextile Shanghai Apparel Fabrics wrapped up last month with a 15% increase in the buyer figure, attracting 82,314 visitors coming from 104 countries and regions. The show also hosted 3,386 exhibitors from 22 countries and regions at the National Exhibition and Convention Center.

Strong growth was registered in buyers from Hong Kong, Korea, Japan and India – this edition’s top four countries and regions – while Italy and Bangladesh entered the top 10 list this year, in eight and tenth places respectively, alongside the US, Taiwan, Russia and the UK.

“After the strong increase in the buyer figure at last October’s Autumn Edition and the generally favourable outlook of the global textiles industry in recent months, we were expecting a strong result this year, but the increased number of exhibitors and buyers placing their trust in this fair as their main business platform has completely exceeded our expectations,” commented Wendy Wen, Senior General Manager of Messe Frankfurt (HK).

“We put this exceptional result down to the fact that there is no other industry event that matches Intertextile Shanghai’s scale, but most importantly that year after year the fair delivers new contacts from around the world and actual orders and business results for exhibitors. With the quality and quantity of buyers this edition and the tangible outcomes reported to us by exhibitors, the fair has reached a new level as the kick-off event for the spring/summer season.”

Growth areas

Seven halls were in use this spring, with everything from fabrics for ladieswear, menswear, suiting, shirting, lingerie and swimwear, to high-end wool fabrics, original pattern designs, functional and performance fabrics, sustainability products and services, digital printing technologies, garment and fashion accessories, and more on display.

Growth areas this edition included the Premium Wool Zone, with the exhibitor number doubling from last year, reflecting the evolving use of wool in spring/summer collections. The international area of the Beyond Denim zone also doubled in size this year, while overseas presence in Accessories Vision grew by 73%.

Beyond Denim

“We’re getting a very good response from worldwide buyers here, and we’re developing new customers through this fair, so we are really delighted to be here as it’s paying off. In the previous three shows, we’ve developed eight new customers, and this edition we’ve also made two deals. It’s worth for us to come time and time again because you not only see your existing customers, but you find opportunities to develop new customers as well,” commented Rizwan Hafeez, Marketing Manager, Diamond Denim by Sapphire, a Pakistan based exhibitor, participating in the Beyond Denim zone.

“It’s an achievement to come to this fair and sell something! We also like that this is a huge fair, not only denim but fabrics, yarns, everything, and it’s divided into different zones and very focused, so we know buyers coming here are really looking for denim, so only really focused customers come here.”

Functional Lab

“We choose Intertextile to announce our new products as it’s the most well-known trade fair in the textile industry. One of our fabrics was selected in the Fabrics China Award which attracted a lot of buyers to our booth. We make use of this fair to promote our brand and meet new customers. We regard it as an international platform and met many professional buyers from garment factories and brands, 20% of whom were from overseas,” said Raymond Tsai, Business Manager, TAIG CHEIN Textile Co Ltd, Taiwan.

www.intertextileapparel.com