Market Discussion: Sino Russian Textile And Garment Industry Business Negotiation Exceeded Expectations

from Textile Industry Branch of China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (hereinafter referred to as: China Council for the Promotion of Textile Trade) and China Knitting Industry Association The jointly organized Chinese textile and clothing entrepreneur delegation will go to Russia for trade talks on textile and clothing industry on June 3-9, 2024, and visit local textile and clothing enterprises. In the new situation, explore new opportunities for cooperation. The delegation was led by Liu Lihua, Secretary General of China Council for the Promotion of Textile Trade, and a total of 19 industry leaders and enterprise representatives from China Knitting Industry Association, Shantou Textile and Garment Industry Association, Myanmar China Textile and Garment Association and other industries, including clothing fabrics, clothing and household textiles.

The delegation's visit comes just after President Putin's 20th visit to China. With Russia facing multiple challenges, Russian enterprises have a strong desire to seek Chinese suppliers. With a population of 146 million and an economic aggregate of about US $2 trillion, Russia occupies a pivotal position in the global market. Russia's light industry foundation is relatively weak, and its textile and clothing are highly dependent on imports. In recent years, the Russian government is actively promoting the localization process of the textile industry. According to the Development Strategy for 2020-2025 formulated by the Ministry of Industry and Trade of Russia, Russia will build large garment production enterprises by the end of 2025 to increase the proportion of localized clothing supply. In 2023, China's textile and clothing exports to Russia will amount to 7.052 billion dollars, and China is the largest textile and clothing importer in Russia. The main imported products include: fur clothing, chemical fiber cold proof clothing, knitted clothing, knitted fabrics, cotton socks, artificial fibers, etc. Jeans are popular with consumers in the Russian market. As the joint construction of the "Belt and Road" enters the stage of high-quality development, Russia, as an important participant and key partner of the "Belt and Road" initiative, will present broad space and potential for cooperation in the textile and clothing industry between China and Russia.

During the visit to Russia, the delegation participated in the Russian Federation of Textile and Garment Industry Entrepreneurs (hereinafter referred to as SOUZLEGPROM) The "Sino Russian Textile and Garment Trade Cooperation Seminar" jointly organized with the China Council for the Promotion of Textile Trade to understand the current situation of the Russian textile and garment industry and conduct B2B negotiations; Then the delegation investigated seven Russian textile and clothing enterprises and Russia's Kosikin State University (formerly Moscow State Textile University) on the spot, and deeply investigated the market environment of Russian textile and clothing industry.

　　 Sino Russian Textile and Clothing Trade Cooperation Seminar

On June 4, 2024, Sino Russian Textile and Clothing Trade Cooperation Seminar The meeting was held in Moscow Krasnoseliskaya Hotel. Alexsandra Sakaeva, Vice President of SOUZLEGPROM, presided over the meeting, and Andrey Razbrodi, President of SOUZLEGPROM, made an opening speech. Then Alexsandra Sakaeva introduced the current situation of Russian fashion industry. Liu Lihua, secretary-general of the China Council for the Promotion of Textile Trade, stated the current situation of China's textile and clothing industry and the prospects of China Russia industrial cooperation. Li Hong, Vice President of China Knitting Industry Association, explained the situation of China's knitting industry and was full of confidence in Sino Russian trade cooperation.

　　 Andrey Razbrodi, Chairman of SOUZLEGPROM It was pointed out in the speech that it was right time for SOUZLEGPROM to actively cooperate with the China Council for the Promotion of Textile Trade. Andrey Razbrodi said: "Needless to say, the world is changing. Now is the era of cooperation, innovation interaction and focus shift. We are at the starting point of this new road." Andrey Razbrodi stressed that the foundation of new cooperation will determine the future development of the textile industry. The estimated capacity of the Russian market is between 4 trillion and 44 trillion rubles, equivalent to about 40 billion euros. Russia has about 25000 small and medium-sized and large light industrial enterprises.

　　 Alexsandra Sakaeva, Vice Chairman of SOUZLEGPROM It was pointed out that although Russia faced multiple challenges, the Russian fashion market still showed significant growth potential, especially in the fashion field. Russian local brands occupy a more important position in the market, and the market concentration has improved, showing a strong adaptability. The sales of e-commerce and market platforms have increased significantly, and the market scale is expected to continue to expand in the future. The big brands in the industry have achieved steady development through multi-channel strategy, cost control and differentiation strategy. In general, the Russian fashion market still shows resilience and growth momentum in a complex environment, and is expected to continue to make progress in many aspects in the future.

　　 Liu Lihua, Secretary General of China Council for the Promotion of Textile Trade Thank you for the warm reception and activity organization of SOUZLEGPROM, and welcome the Russian enterprise representatives and media friends present. Liu Lihua said that China's textile industry has developed rapidly, with strong scientific and technological innovation ability, fashion leadership and green industry system. The textile and clothing trade between China and Russia has grown steadily, and the total volume of textile and clothing trade between China and Russia will reach 7.053 billion US dollars in 2023. It is suggested that the two countries strengthen industrial exchanges, promote two-way trade investigation and industry cooperation, deepen mutual visits and mutual learning, and jointly promote high-quality development of the textile industry.

　　 Li Hong, Vice President of China Knitting Industry Association According to the introduction, there are about 70000 knitting enterprises in China. In 2023, the export volume of the knitting industry will be US $104.09 billion, accounting for 66.19%. China's knitting industry is fully equipped, and its products cover underwear, T-shirts and other categories, with the largest production capacity in the world. In recent years, with the development of new materials, process innovation and intelligent manufacturing, the performance and application fields of knitted products have been continuously improved. China Russia cooperation in the knitting industry has a long history. In the past five years, China's knitted goods trade with Russia has grown significantly, and the export of knitting machinery has also increased significantly. In the future, China and Russia should strengthen trade, exchanges and cooperation to jointly promote high-quality industrial development.

After the seminar, a B2B trade fair was held, which attracted more than 70 professional Russian buyers. Because of the accurate matching with Russian buyers according to the products of Chinese enterprises in the early stage, most enterprises said that the effect of participating in the delegation exceeded expectations.

Investigation of Russian textile and garment enterprises

　　 MODER TAK LTD

It was founded in 2018 and started large-scale production in 2020. At present, the company is one of the leading enterprises in the Russian tactical clothing and equipment market. MODER TAK LTD is committed to becoming a professional company that produces products with quality, functionality, technology and affordable prices in Russia, and constantly integrates the latest military technology and material trends into its products.

　　 2MOOD

Russian medium and high-end clothing brand enterprise, the company has 18 stores in total, of which 7 stores will be opened in 2024. Since 2017, the company has been producing clothes, shoes, accessories, and focusing on capsule series, integrating all elements perfectly. The company team includes more than 200 professionals: designers, stylists, marketing personnel, consultants and technical experts.

　　 KANZLER LTD

As a high-end men's wear brand company, it has a history of 30 years. The company mainly sells men's wear products, and plans to add women's wear and children's wear products. At present, there are 85 stores in Russia, and 20% of the products are sold through the network. Plan to consider opening stores in China.

　　 Slava Zaitsev Fashion House

Vyacheslav Mikhail Lovich Zaitsev (Russian: ВжлеславМихайловиличЗажев; March 2, 1938 - April 30, 2023) is a Russian fashion designer, painter, graphic artist and dramatic costume designer. He is considered to be one of the most outstanding fashion designers in the Soviet Union, and is compared to Christian Dior and Yves Saint Laurent. The staff introduced Zaitsev's life to the delegation and showed the products designed by Zaitsev.

　　 LESEL

LESEL comes from the French "le sel", which means salt. Women are the salt of the world. The company has been established for 14 years and is a local elite brand of Russian women's wear. Designer Larissa Vladimirova has been working as a designer in famous Russian and international companies for more than ten years. In 2009, she integrated her rich experience into her brand LESEL and created a personal style of high-end ready to wear series. At present, the brand is not sold in Russian malls, mainly in the form of boutiques.

　　 Kosygin Russian State University (Technologies. Design. Art)

Kosikin State University in Russia is a leading university in the field of fashion and industry in Russia, and the former Moscow State Textile University. It covers all creative and technical disciplines from garment design to production technology. Among the past teachers of the university are world famous fashion designers: Vyacheslav Zaitsev, Valentin Youdashkin, Elena Tplitskaya, and fashion historian Alexander Vasiliev. The university focuses on educating students to combine theoretical knowledge with practice. They advocate the idea that "today you are a student, tomorrow you are a brand".

　　 BASK

BASK is a clothing provider for extreme tourism, mountaineering and polar exploration and equipment. Russian state leaders have visited BASK. At present, the company's products are in short supply, and 6/7 of the products need to be outsourced to other Russian companies. The company has a professional team - designers, technicians, production workers - capable of transforming products from creativity to finished products, and strictly controlling the quality of production, materials and accessories.

　　 SOLSTUDIO INDUSTRY

Solstudio has a history of 25 years. The company has a strong designer team. Its products have entered the WGSN system and are sold online and offline. The company has a digital printing factory, which not only produces for its own brand, but also produces products of other companies.

Achievements of the delegation

Every delegation enterprise has been exposed to this visit 5-20 Russian buyers, 84.62% of enterprises said that the effect of participating in the delegation exceeded expectations 。

With Russia facing multiple challenges, Russian local enterprises are facing new opportunities for development, as well as new business opportunities for Chinese enterprises. The following figure shows the business opportunities in the Russian market felt by the delegation enterprises.

During the visit to Russia, the members of the delegation experienced the welcome of Russian buyers to Chinese products. For example, the director of MODER TAK LTD was very excited about the cooperation suggestions put forward by the delegation enterprises; The general manager of LESEL was very satisfied with the sample clothes produced by the delegation, so that he was reluctant to take them off after putting them on; On the second day of the B2B trade docking meeting, Russian buyers sent samples of clothes, hoping to get quotations from the delegation enterprises.

This exchange has become an important platform for strengthening Sino Russian trade cooperation and experience exchange, and is conducive to the win-win development of the Sino Russian textile and clothing industry. It is expected that Chinese and Russian enterprises will promote bilateral trade and accelerate the diversified development of China's textile industry through communication and exchange.