Back-to-back visitor increases of 15% have solidified Intertextile Apparel’s status as a global apparel textile flagship. 94,661 visitors[1] from over 110 countries & regions attended the fair (2018: 82,314, 104 countries & regions). Aisles in six exhibition halls saw a sea of visitors, as the quality, variety and innovation of the textile options on offer impressed trade buyers from all over the world. Reports of strong onsite order levels belied concerns of a slower economy and trade disputes ? suggesting that, at Intertextile Shanghai Apparel Fabrics, there is always potential to be found.

　　“After already experiencing a significant increase in last year’s Spring Edition visitor numbers, and with muted reports coming from some industry events earlier in the spring / summer sourcing calendar, we were not expecting such a strong increase again this edition,” acknowledged Ms Wendy Wen, Senior General Manager of Messe Frankfurt (HK) Ltd. “However, it’s apparent that no matter the economic situation, the unrivalled scale and variety of Intertextile Apparel’s exhibitors means that trade buyers worldwide continue to choose this fair as their main spring / summer sourcing platform, year after year. We look forward to welcoming the global apparel industry back for their autumn / winter sourcing from 25 ? 27 September, for our 25th anniversary.”
　　
　　This year’s Spring Edition housed 3,273 exhibitors from 23 countries and regions (2018: 3,386 exhibitors, 22 countries and regions) over six halls at the National Exhibition and Convention Centre (Shanghai). This included an increase of 12% in overseas exhibitors. The top 10 visitor countries & regions this year were Hong Kong, Korea, Japan, India, the US, Taiwan, Russia, Italy, Vietnam and Spain. The invitation-only Milano Unica Pavilion had a 20% increase in visitor numbers compared to the 2018 Spring Edition, and reported a more than satisfactory presence of Chinese buyers, including those who could not visit Milan in February due to the overlap with the Chinese New Year holiday. In addition, Milano Unica noted the presence of international buyers from Asia, in particular South Korea and Japan, but also India, Russia and Saudi Arabia. As well as offering access to the global textile market, the fair also provided industry insight at the fringe programme, which included three panel discussions and 25 seminars.
　　
　　Exhibitor feedback
　　
　　SalonEurope
　　
　　“We’ve had a lot of good customers come to our booth during the first two days, who’ve made sample orders. Our target is Chinese buyers, but we’ve also had European and Korean buyers come to our booth. As a Swiss brand, we have a high quality and price, and a very good standard of finishing, and domestic buyers recognise us for these things. We have also had a lot of customers come to our booth saying they saw us in the Trend Forum. Next time, we will have a bigger booth!”
　　
　　Ms Irina De Giorgi, Sales Manager, Ideas by Glarotex AG, Switzerland
　　
　　Milano Unica
　　
　　“We have over 20 years of experience exhibiting with Intertextile, and we find new clients every time. Intertextile is an important bridge between Western and European products and the China market. That enables the Chinese buyers to source products that are not available in their local market. At the same time, it helps to expand our brand exposure in the Chinese market.”
　　
　　Ms Nadia Schincardi, Export Manager, Tessitura Monti, Italy
　　
　　Premium Wool Zone
　　
　　“This edition’s visitor numbers and quality has exceeded our expectations. I estimate we’ve already met with around 150 good quality visitors. Intertextile Apparel has 25 years of history, and in menswear, it’s already the most important trade show in China. So if you do menswear, if you look for quality fabrics or yarns, then I think Intertextile Apparel is a must-see global trade show. This fair works.”
　　
　　Mr Ning Zhang, President, Beijing Vitality Textiles Co Ltd (Stylbiella), China
　　
　　Verve for Design
　　
　　“We’ve mainly made sales with Chinese buyers, who are our target audience ? the demand for original prints in China is huge, because the market is always looking for something different. Exhibiting at this fair is a valuable opportunity and of course, we will continue to come back. This is a big event on the calendar for lots of our existing customers, so we can meet them here each year.”
　　
　　Ms Jane Han Zhang, Creative Director, Fairbairn & Wolf Studio, UK / China
　　
　　Functional Lab
　　
　　“We’ve exhibited at Intertextile for over a decade and have witnessed its development. As such a renowned and professional exhibition, it is highly organised, which is convenient for visitors. We also can meet a lot of elite buyers here. They are taking a strong interest in functional and eco-friendly fabrics, which is also the main industry trend. We are optimistic about the China apparel and fabric market. The bustling scene on the fairground also proves that the market has big potential.”
　　
　　Mr Gary Hsueh, Sales Manager, Artex Textiles Co., Ltd, Taiwan
　　
　　Beyond Denim
　　
　　“We’re using this fair to establish a foothold in China. The Chinese denim market is getting stronger, and it’s huge, so there’s a lot of potential. Intertextile is one of the best shows in the industry for learning about the market. We also have buyers from our company sourcing at Yarn Expo, so the whole platform with the concurrent fairs is very effective. China is opening its doors more for importing, and as an overseas brand we definitely stand out here.”
　　
　　Mr Muhammad Tariq Alavi, Senior Manager Marketing and Business Development ? Denim, Soorty Enterprises (Pvt) Ltd, Pakistan
　　
　　Japan Pavilion
　　
　　“In this edition, we’ve met a good number of customers who are willing to buy our more expensive products, because they understand the quality of our products. I think Intertextile is the biggest exhibition in the world now. There’s big potential in this show, and every time, we can meet more than 500 visitors here. We’ve been in this show more than 10 times, and we always meet new buyers. No matter what, the right people and opportunities can be found at Intertextile.”
　　
　　Mr Rio Okabe, General Manager, Global Operation Dept., Toyoshima, Japan
　　
　　Buyer opinions
　　
　　“I’m really impressed with the quality of the exhibitors, and the high level of quality and certified fabrics here. I’m looking for sustainable alternative fabrics such as Tencel, Modal, organic cotton, BCI and I found them all here, so it’s been really good for eco-friendly products. Intertextile is different to other fairs as I can find anything I need here due to the number of suppliers. The price range here is very wide, so I can find all kinds of prices as well as qualities. This fair has been amazing, it will make my life a lot easier back in the office!”
　　
　　Ms Marina Silveira, Senior Jersey Designer, hush, UK
　　
　　“We have been sourcing from China since 2013. We can always find new suppliers here as well as our existing ones. It’s very easy to source here, the suppliers are flexible even for small orders. With such a wide range of products, we can find a lot to meet our needs here. We will place some orders while here this week, but we also use this fair to discover new things that we can evaluate back in the office. We tend to place orders every month so this fair gives us a good catalogue of options.”
　　
　　Mr Xavier Planas, Ravial S.A., Spain
　　
　　“At previous editions of Intertextile, I have found and cooperated with over 10 suppliers with reasonable prices, high quality and good service, and I am hunting for more now. ‘New’ is essential in fashion, and Intertextile always houses a wide variety of new and interesting products. This is what attracts people from all over the world. You can find whatever you need here. This is an outstanding platform for sourcing and I recommend this fair to people throughout the textile industry.”
　　
　　Mr Munna, Sales Manager, GYF Trading Company, China
　　
　　Seminar speaker
　　
　　“I think it’s very important to have this seminar at Intertextile because here you have a cross section of visitors from all different parts of the supply chain, so it’s a very big platform for us to connect with people here. Brands are looking for certified suppliers, and awareness is rising amongst local Chinese brands who would like to be certified as well.”
　　
　　Ms Deepa Hingorani, Textile Sustainability Consultant, PEFC International, Switzerland
　　
　　The 25th Autumn Edition of Intertextile Shanghai Apparel Fabrics will be held from 25 ? 27 September 2019, once again at the National Exhibition and Convention Center.
　　
　　Intertextile Shanghai Apparel Fabrics ? Spring Edition 2019 is co-organised by Messe Frankfurt (HK) Ltd; the Sub-Council of Textile Industry, CCPIT; and the China Textile Information Centre. For more details on this fair, please visit: www.intertextileapparel.com. Information from the international textiles sector and Messe Frankfurt’s textiles fairs worldwide can be found at: www.texpertise-network.com.
　　
　　[1]: Figure includes visitors from concurrent shows Yarn Expo Spring, Intertextile Shanghai Home Textiles, CHIC and PH Value who also visited Intertextile Shanghai Apparel Fabrics.