Intertextile Beijing Apparel Fabrics - China International Trade Fair for Apparel Fabrics & Accessories 31 March - 2 April 2004, Beijing Exhibition Centre

Over 16,000 buyers attended Intertextile Beijing Apparel Fabrics 2004; an increase of 28 percent from 2003

Positive feedback from exhibitors and visitors reinforces Intertextile Beijing¡¯s strong market position
F I N A L R E P O R T
Intertextile Beijing Apparel Fabrics closed on 2 April 2004 after a successful three-day run in Beijing. The show featured 526 exhibitors from 17 countries & regions, showing a wide range of apparel fabrics and accessories. The fair ¡°which after four years has established itself as a quality sourcing venue for mainland Chinese buyers ¡±attracted a total of 16,334 trade buyers from 55 countries: a 28 percent increase from last year.

More than 80 percent of the buyers were from mainland China, predominantly from Beijing and the surrounding area, making Intertextile Beijing Apparel Fabrics the area's definitive event for the apparel industry. The show has become the first choice for manufacturers and buyers from China's north and north-east region to source anything and everything from fibres to fabrics and accessories.

As in previous years, the exhibitors at Intertextile Beijing included a large group from Italy, with many companies from the renowned Biella and Prato regions. ¡°The Chinese market is very important to Italian manufacturers. Intertextile provides a very good opportunity for the newcomers to get to know the market, and to see first hand how business is done here. Meeting face-to-face helps overcome the cultural differences,¡±said Ms. Chiara Donelli of the Italian Institute for Foreign Trade.

Another major group at the fair was the Japanese Pavilion, organised by the Japan Textile Export Organisation. ¡°I am very happy with Intertextile Beijing this year,¡±said Mr. Masao Yamashita, Chairman of the Japan Pavilion Executive Committee. ¡°The Japanese pavilion is 50 percent bigger than last year. I am very pleased to see that there are more visitors attending the show and the buyers seem to be more professional. Most of our exhibitors are gaining better results than expected.¡±

¡°We are very happy with the development of Intertextile Beijing, and with the results in Spring 2004,¡±said Ms Katy Lam, Director of Trade Fairs for Messe Frankfurt in Hong Kong. ¡°There is no question that Beijing & northern China need a dedicated business platform; China simply cannot be viewed as ¡®one market' any longer. The strong and positive feedback we have received at this show gives us confidence that the event will continue to prosper ¡±

Exhibitor and visitor statements

For new exhibitors, the show offered them a window of opportunity to meet buyers from all over China, and to build a network of new customers. ¡°Unifi is participating in Intertextile Beijing for the first time, with the objective of raising exposure in the Chinese market,¡±said Ms. Annie Kikuchi, Market / Product Development Manager for Unifi Asia Ltd. ¡°The show is impressive and the visitor flow is good. So far, we have met over 100 potential clients¡±

Many of the repeat exhibitors commented on the continuing positive development in the quality and professionalism of buyers at the show. ¡°We have been exhibiting at Intertextile Beijing for many years, and like the show very much,¡±said Mr. Deepak Kedia, Senior Manager, Exports for Thai Filament Textiles Co. Ltd. ¡°The visitors' response this year is excellent, and our polyester filament fabrics have been very popular¡±

¡°This is the third time that Toray has exhibited at Intertextile Beijing,¡±said Mr. Akira Nagahara of Japan's Toray International. ¡±My colleagues and I have been very busy meeting up with many of our buyers, the show is really an ideal meeting point. More visitors are attending the show and the quality of the buyers is definitely improving¡±
¡°This is our first exhibition in an Asian country, and we have been impressed by the quantity of visitors,¡±said Ms. Abigail Job, Sales Promotion Manager for Dow Fiber Solutions of Switzerland. ¡°This is a good way for us to introduce our speciality fibres to the Chinese market. We have all been very busy handling enquiries from buyers and meeting clients¡±

Ms. Chitty Cao of J&B Int'l Hi-tech Textile & Garment Supply Co. Ltd., came to Intertextile Beijing looking for sportswear fabrics, and was impressed with what she found. ¡°I have learned a lot about the coming fashion trends in the trend forum, and have developed contacts with many new manufacturers. The quality of the show is very good overall¡±

Overseas buyers, who comprised around 15 percent of the visitors to the show, gave value-for-money as one of the top reasons for visiting Intertextile Beijing. ¡°I am here to source fabrics for menswear,¡±said Mr. Gilles Bourdy from France. ¡°It is good to meet so many suppliers under one roof; we can save a lot of time and energy on sourcing¡±

Intertextile Beijing Apparel Fabrics - organised by Messe Frankfurt (HK) Ltd, the Sub-Council of Textile Industry - CCPIT and China Textile Information Centre / China Textiles Development Centre - took place as part of the inaugural 'Beijing Textile Arena' along with Yarn Expo, CHIC and the Knitting Fair, and was designed to give buyers a one-stop sourcing platform for apparel and textile-related products.

The next Intertextile Beijing Apparel Fabrics will take place from 30 March to 1 April 2005, in the Beijing Exhibition Centre.