While most county-level textile clusters are still anxious about declining orders, Hunan's Qiyang has unveiled an ambitious target: by 2028, the industry's output will exceed 15 billion yuan, establishing a complete outdoor sports textile and apparel chain. The goal was formally announced at a promotional event at the National Exhibition and Convention Center in Shanghai on August 26, leveraging the China Textile Federation autumn exhibition as a window to showcase Qiyang's differentiated approach to more than 5,200 exhibitors from over 30 countries and regions.
Background
Qiyang's confidence is not unfounded. Over the past few years, this county-level city in southern Hunan has accumulated production capacity in functional fabrics such as outdoor umbrella cloth and bag cloth, gradually forming a prototype from chemical fiber raw materials to terminal equipment. However, the real turning point came when local authorities realized the ceiling of being a pure fabric supplier—low added value, weak pricing power, and easy substitution. Thus, the industrial plan for the next three years no longer settles for 'selling cloth' but explicitly aims to iterate toward terminal brands, planning to build three major manufacturing bases: national outdoor umbrella cloth and rain gear, outdoor sports wearable products, and outdoor sports equipment, attempting to keep the industry chain's profits local.
The event's high-level attendance also reflects the urgency of industrial upgrading. Two vice presidents of the China National Textile and Apparel Council attended, the director of Donghua University's Chemical Fiber Research Institute delivered a keynote on functional fiber new materials, and an industry think tank released the 'Special Study on the Development of Qiyang's Textile Industry.' Multiple forces converge on the same judgment: the way out for county-level textiles lies not in scale expansion but in building a complete chain within a niche track.
Industry Impact
Qiyang's '1347' action framework essentially targets the weaknesses in the industry chain. The strengthening direction focuses on upgrading the functionality of umbrella cloth and bag cloth, aiming to stabilize the existing base; the gap-filling direction directly addresses the shortage of chemical fiber raw materials and auxiliary materials, which are precisely the upstream lifeline for outdoor functional clothing and camping protection products; the extension direction involves brand operations and cross-border e-commerce, breaking through traditional manufacturing thinking. This 'three-chain synergy' strategy signals to buyers and foreign trade companies: Qiyang is no longer just a processing workshop but aspires to be a supplier offering complete solutions.
From industry trends, Qiyang has seized several key points. The phenomena mentioned by Chen Ye—overcapacity in general fibers, lack of breakthroughs in single-function products, capital favor for bio-based fibers, and polarization in recycled fibers—are a true reflection of the current chemical fiber and fabric market. Multi-functional composite and customized development are becoming new trends, and Qiyang's choice of the outdoor sports niche avoids the red ocean of general fabrics. For brands, this means that in the future, they may find customized fabrics and finished products more tailored to outdoor needs in Qiyang, rather than one-size-fits-all stock.