Dalang Town in Dongguan, a knitwear cluster producing 900 million sweaters annually—roughly one-fifth of the global output—is attempting a narrative shift from 'manufacturing' to 'culture'. On June 24, the 10th Textile Intangible Cultural Heritage Conference kicked off alongside the 23rd China (Dalang) Knitwear Products Trade Fair and the 95th International Wool Conference. This three-in-one event is not a simple scheduling overlay but a strategic move by Dalang's knitwear industry to redefine its role in the global supply chain through cultural heritage empowerment.
Background: Three-in-One as an Industry Signal
Dalang recorded a GDP of 47.37 billion yuan in 2024, with the knitwear sector as its absolute pillar. Historically, the town has relied on scale advantages—'one in five sweaters worldwide comes from Dalang'—but the risks of low added value and homogeneous competition have long lingered. The convergence of three major events essentially represents a collective declaration of transformation from 'volume' to 'value'. Since its inception in 2017, the Textile Heritage Conference has traveled through Zhejiang, Beijing, Yunnan, Liaoning, Guizhou, Hebei, and Sichuan. Its first landing in Dalang this year targets the potential for deep integration of industry and culture.
Sun Ruizhe, President of the China National Textile and Apparel Council, noted at the opening that consumers are increasingly focusing on health, self-expression, and emotional connection. This means technological innovation must translate into product experience, and cultural resources into brand value. This observation directly points to the direction of knitwear upgrade: no longer just selling yarn and garments, but selling cultural narratives and emotional premiums.
Industry Impact: From 'Wearable Cultural Assets' to Standard System Restructuring
Dalang Party Secretary Dong Tie introduced a key concept—'wearable cultural assets'. This is not mere marketing rhetoric but has concrete applications: Lingnan qilin patterns, plant dyeing techniques, and hand embroidery are systematically embedded into knitwear designs. For example, the heritage fashion show at the opening centered on local qilin patterns, with exclusive patent designs provided by artisan Wan Gongxue, who won the Shanhua Award, and industrial production by China's top ten fashion designer Wang Dong. This closed loop of 'heritage pattern + original design + precision manufacturing' means that traditional techniques are no longer museum exhibits but scalable, marketable fashion commodities.
More noteworthy is the breakthrough in standardization. The CNTAC Heritage Office signed the 'Textile Heritage Standards and Certification Cooperation' with China United Inspection. This marks the first unified industry standard for heritage product quality and authenticity. For buyers and foreign trade companies, this is significant: previously, heritage products struggled to scale due to lack of standards. With certification, buyers can confidently incorporate heritage elements into orders, and exporters gain a traceable quality endorsement for overseas markets.
Additionally, multiple agreements cover quality service system co-building, brand supply-demand service cooperation, and investment attraction. For instance, the Guanshang Smart Manufacturing Center signed an entry agreement with Jiangyin Hengxiang Weaving, indicating substantial progress in attracting external high-quality supply chain resources. This 'internal and external linkage' strategy is expected to break long-standing regional information barriers in the knitwear industry.