Shanghai releases new blueprint to boost consumption in the fashion industry

Shanghai released a blueprint to boost consumption in the fashion industry, with an industry output of 520 billion yuan (US$74.3 billion) in 2025, making the city a global fashion capital.

The industry covers fashion, technology, design and culture sectors, cultivating many well-known brands nationwide or worldwide. In 2021, the industry output hit 433.5 billion yuan, a 9.9 percent growth from a year ago, much higher than local GDP growth.

"As the largest economic center city in China, Shanghai has a developed a consumer market, a mature consumer atmosphere, and a strong ability to allocate global consumer resources with supply-demand docking and consumption innovation," according to the Shanghai Commission of Economy and Informatization.

By 2025, Shanghai will cultivate a trillion-yuan-level fashion consumption market, with three to five leading firms, with an annual revenue over 100 billion yuan, 20 firms with an annual revenue of over 10 billion, 200 firms of over 1 billion yuan, and a batch of competitive firms with niche markets, according to a blueprint, published by the commission and other city-level bureaus.

The city will also establish several fashion industrial parks, offer opportunities for international fashion talent and gather trends. With innovation and consumption the set is poised to be an international fashion capital.

In September, Shanghai opened the World Design Cities Conference (WDCC), to boost the design and fashion industry. Brands showed products and services to woo consumers including many new-generation consumers.

The relaxing of pandemic control measures will help boost the strategy.

Now, health codes or acid test results are no longer required to enter Shanghai culture and tourism sites, which is expected to bring more traffic and consumption.