Brand value competition is becoming a new battleground in the textile and garment industry. The 'Textile and Apparel Excellence Brand Cultivation Action Plan (2026-2028)', recently issued by five Chinese ministries, sets a clear quantitative target: cultivate at least 25 excellent brands within three years and establish an evaluation index system. This signals a policy-driven shift from 'scale leadership' to 'value leadership'.
Policy Logic Behind the Plan
Sun Ruizhe, president of CNTAC, emphasized that the textile industry, as a pillar of the national economy, is accelerating its transformation into tech, fashion, and green textiles. Cultivating excellent brands essentially converts manufacturing advantages into brand premiums. The target of 25 brands is not a mere quantity goal but a mechanism to concentrate resources on promising brands, embodying a 'quality-first, elite-selection' approach. For buyers and factories, this means resource allocation will tilt significantly: companies with technical depth and cultural heritage will gain more policy and market support over the next three years.
Industry Impact: Transmission from Manufacturing to Branding
The core of the plan lies in building an evaluation index system, moving brand building from experience-based to science-based measurement. For upstream yarn and fabric suppliers, downstream brand upgrades will force quality improvements and differentiated R&D. For example, excellent brands will demand higher functionality and environmental performance, driving tech iterations in chemical fiber and dyeing. For industrial clusters like Keqiao, Shengze, and Nantong, this action may accelerate the integration of regional and corporate brands, creating a dual competitive advantage.
Industry organizations play a key role. CNTAC plans six measures: establishing a brand incubation mechanism, conducting diagnostic services, collecting brand stories, building public platforms, promoting cultural-tourism integration, and training brand talent. These initiatives will directly change the cost structure for SMEs' branding efforts—what previously required solo efforts in planning and channel expansion can now leverage platform resources for efficiency.
Practical Recommendations
For Buyers - Monitor the release of brand cultivation lists; prioritize cooperation with listed brands for better quality stability and compliance. - Use the evaluation index system as a supplier selection tool, incorporating brand-building capability into procurement decisions to reduce supply chain risks.
For Factories and Exporters - Actively engage with the industry organization's diagnostic services to identify brand-building gaps, such as design capability, cultural narrative, or green certification. - Participate in brand story collection and cultural-tourism activities to transform manufacturing strengths into shareable brand content, enhancing overseas buyers' trust. - Proactively invest in tech and green transitions, such as developing functional fabrics or obtaining sustainability certifications, to meet the hard thresholds set by excellent brands.
Brand building is a long-term marathon, but the policy window is open. Understanding the resource flows behind these 25 brand targets is key to seizing structural opportunities in the next three years.