One out of every five sweaters in the world is produced in Dalang, Dongguan. This industrial cluster, home to 30,000 knitting enterprises and 200,000 workers, achieved a total industry transaction value exceeding 72 billion yuan in 2025. On June 25, the 10th China Textile Intangible Cultural Heritage Conference was held here, connecting thousand-year-old textile heritage with the world's largest knitting cluster. The event signaled a clear shift: heritage preservation is moving from static museum display to deep integration with industrial systems.
The Intersection of Industrial Data and Heritage Transformation
The data released at the conference forms the hard foundation for integration. Dalang produces approximately 900 million sweaters annually, with a supply chain that covers everything from yarn and accessories to design, manufacturing, and sales. This density means that any attempt to industrialize a heritage technique can quickly find full-chain support from sampling to mass production.
Sun Ruizhe, President of the China National Textile and Apparel Council (CNTAC), noted in his report that textile heritage is a key resource for enhancing industrial value and cultural influence. When heritage techniques encounter a cluster like Dalang, the potential conversion efficiency far exceeds that of decentralized workshops. Deng Xiaoding, an official from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, proposed four strategies: preserving the essence, empowering with culture, innovating scenarios, and fostering collaborative governance. These strategies essentially define the track for industrializing heritage: preserving the roots while opening the door to the market.
From OEM to Cultural Empowerment: An Industrial Leap
Dalang's knitting industry began in the 1980s with OEM processing. Over four decades, it has evolved from a simple manufacturing base into a cluster with its own brands and complete R&D capabilities. The hosting of this conference signals that this manufacturing-focused zone is seeking new growth poles in cultural added value.
Deputy Mayor of Dalang, Ye Jianfen, stated that the town has cultivated a number of benchmark enterprises integrating 'knitting plus heritage'. For example, Yinxiang Prairie focuses on high-end cashmere, Tongmen Fashion combines traditional Chaoshan hand-hook techniques with modern computer knitting, and Zhouhong Fashion emphasizes deep integration of aesthetics and wool knitting. These cases demonstrate that heritage does not have to remain in artisan workshops; it can be transformed into market-competitive fashion products through modern design language and industrial production systems.
Professor Guo Ruiping from the Beijing Institute of Fashion Technology showcased series inspired by the 24 solar terms and blue-dye innovations. She emphasized that the key to heritage transformation lies in multi-dimensional and multi-level cognitive upgrades, which must be adapted to local conditions. This means that industrialization is not about simply labeling products with heritage tags; it requires a full-chain reshaping from materials and techniques to design and marketing.
Dual Drive from Policy and Platforms
This conference was not just an industry event but also a coordinated effort between policy and platforms. As a key activity of the 2026 National Consumer Brands Promotion Campaign, it received direct attention from ministries including MIIT and the Ministry of Culture and Tourism. Deng Xiaoding's suggestion of 'scenario innovation' points toward bringing heritage into daily life, moving from pure cultural display to constructing consumption scenarios.
The CNTAC Heritage Office released the '2025/2026 China Textile Intangible Cultural Heritage Development Report', which systematically reviews annual achievements and a decade of progress. Simultaneously, the council launched the 'Heritage·Origin - China Youth Heritage Design Support Project' in collaboration with Beijing Fashion Week, providing a platform for young designers and inheritors. This initiative aims to solve the problem of insufficient successors by attracting young talent through market-oriented platforms.
A case shared by Douyin (TikTok's Chinese version) at the conference further validated the empowerment of platform economies. During a recent heritage outfit campaign, Zhuang brocade saw significant commercial conversion, proving that short-video and live-streaming e-commerce are efficient channels for reaching consumers.
Cross-Border Integration and Commercialization Paths
The conference's 'CNTAC Heritage Dalang Salon' focused on two core topics: commercialization paths for textile heritage and design innovation for the future of heritage. Ning Manli, Chairwoman of Danzhai Ninghang Batik, proposed 'let those who know the craft guard the roots, and let those who know the market open the door', a precise summary of the division of labor in heritage industrialization.
Chen Cheng from the Nanjing Yunjin Museum shared practices of activating Yunjin in contemporary design, while Chaozhou embroidery inheritor She Xulei analyzed the integration of Chaozhou embroidery with modern fashion from a hierarchical perspective. These cases show that heritage commercialization is not one-size-fits-all; it requires differentiated design based on technique characteristics, target markets, and consumption scenarios.
For buyers and foreign trade companies, the Dalang model offers a replicable path: leveraging the scale advantages of the industrial cluster and using heritage elements as differentiated selling points to increase product premiums and avoid homogenized competition.