A fabric enterprise producing hundreds of millions of meters annually may have a brand premium far lower than a designer brand with only tens of millions in sales. This long-standing 'big but not strong' dilemma of China's textile industry is now being directly addressed by a newly released top-level policy document.
Policy Anchor: From Scale Competition to Brand Commitment
The 'Textile and Garment Excellence Brand Cultivation Action Plan (2026-2028)', jointly issued by five ministries including MIIT, elevates brand building to a strategic industry priority for the first time. The plan sets a quantitative target of cultivating at least 25 excellence brands within three years, alongside developing a brand evaluation index system.
Public data shows China's textile industry exports over $300 billion annually, possessing the world's most complete supply chain. Yet brand value accounts for a persistently low share of total industry revenue. The 25-brand target is not merely a number—it guides high-quality resources toward enterprises with genuine technological depth, cultural substance, and market potential.
Sun Ruizhe, President of CNTAC, emphasized that the core logic is 'quality first, selecting the best among the strong.' For an industry long accustomed to measuring success by output and scale, this represents a fundamental restructuring of evaluation criteria.
Industry Transmission: How Brand Cultivation Affects Upstream and Downstream
The most immediate impact will be on pricing power distribution within the supply chain. Fabric factories and garment OEMs often passively accept buyer price pressures, squeezing profit margins. As 'excellence brand' becomes the new benchmark, enterprises with proprietary brands will gain stronger bargaining power, forcing upstream suppliers to improve quality and innovation.
For textile clusters like Keqiao, Shengze, and Nantong, local governments and industry associations must reallocate resources. Previously focused on production scale and employment, future investments should shift toward brand incubation, design R&D, and intellectual property protection.
From the consumer perspective, the plan promotes deep integration of cultural tourism activities and brand consumption, bringing brands into everyday life. This aligns with the rising trend of 'guochao' (national trend) consumption—consumers no longer settle for 'Made in China' but seek the cultural stories and technological strength behind 'Chinese brands.'
Implementation Path: Six Major Measures and Industry Response
CNTAC has outlined six work directions. Most notable is the 'Textile and Garment Excellence Brand Incubation Mechanism'—a dynamic 'whitelist' of brands that will receive policy, capital, and channel support.
The plan also emphasizes brand diagnostic services, where professional teams provide strategic advice. For many small and medium textile enterprises, this may be their first systematic brand consultation. Additionally, brand story promotion, public service platforms, and talent cultivation will gradually build a complete brand ecosystem.
Sun Ruizhe noted that brand building is a long-distance race requiring faith and perseverance. Short-term policy benefits won't immediately translate into financial returns, but enterprises that differentiate themselves in technological innovation, Eastern aesthetics, and green responsibility will gain structural dividends over the next three to five years.