Trend Watch
At Shanghai Fashion Week AW2026, the fabric narratives of native designers are undergoing a quiet but profound revolution. In past seasons, we were accustomed to seeing designers chase international trends, using tech-finished, glossy, or exaggerated textures as selling points. This season, however, a significant shift has emerged: fabrics are moving from being 'seen' to being 'sensed.' Designers are focusing more on subtle tactile layers, such as enzyme-washed organic cotton, slightly wrinkled linen-wool blends, and plant-dyed silk. These materials do not shout under the lights but convey warmth and texture during close interaction. This transition from visual dominance to tactile primacy reflects a deeper appreciation for the wearing experience and responds to post-pandemic consumer demand for physical and mental comfort.
Another unmissable trend is the return of 'locality.' Unlike previous seasons that directly borrowed Western haute couture fabric languages, this season's designers actively explored China's textile heritage, such as gambiered canton gauze, Song brocade, and ramie fabric, deconstructing and reinventing them with modern techniques. For instance, one designer combined traditional gambiered silk with a waterproof coating to adapt to urban rain and snow; another translated Guizhou batik patterns into jacquard woven wool, preserving handcraft traces while enhancing durability. This innovative use of local materials not only gives garments a unique cultural identity but also provides new value growth points for the fabric supply chain.
Furthermore, sustainability has evolved from a slogan to a practical choice. On this season's runways, over 60% of featured fabrics contained recycled or bio-based components, such as nylon regenerated from discarded fishing nets, polylactic acid fiber from corn stalks, and 'upcycled cotton' made from fabric scraps. Designers no longer treat eco-friendliness as an add-on but integrate it into the material's structure and function. For example, a jacket made from mycelium composite material is not only fully biodegradable but also possesses leather-like texture and resilience. This holistic consideration of a material's lifecycle signals that Chinese independent designers are transforming from 'fashion followers' to 'material innovators.'
Notably, this season's fabric preferences also embrace 'slow fashion.' Designers tend to choose materials that naturally change over time, such as non-shrink-treated wool, metal-coated fabrics that oxidize, and denim that softens with wear. They deliberately preserve the 'imperfections' of fabrics, viewing them as marks of co-growth with the wearer. This philosophy contrasts sharply with fast fashion's disposable culture and prompts designers to build closer collaborations with fabric suppliers to develop materials with narrative potential.
Industry Impact
The shift in native designers' fabric preferences is creating ripple effects across the textile supply chain. First, for upstream fabric mills, small-batch, multi-variety, and highly customized order models are becoming mainstream. Unlike the past emphasis on scale, designers now prefer working with small and medium-sized mills that offer flexible sampling and rapid response. This requires mills to enhance their R&D capabilities, such as swiftly adjusting yarn blends, experimenting with new coatings, or developing special finishing processes. Simultaneously, mills must establish more transparent supply chains so designers can track carbon footprints and social responsibility performance.
Second, for buyers and brands, fabric selection is shifting from cost-oriented to value-oriented. They are willing to pay premiums for fabrics with unique hand-feel, eco-certifications, or cultural stories, but they also demand stable quality and supply reliability. Therefore, procurement strategies need to be more forward-thinking, such as co-developing with mills in advance or digging deeper into emerging materials at trade shows. Moreover, cross-disciplinary collaboration is becoming the norm—designers are partnering with biotech companies, material labs, and even agricultural enterprises to explore novel materials like seaweed fiber and tea-leaf leather, bringing cross-industry innovation opportunities to traditional textiles.
Finally, this trend is reshaping the international trade landscape. Chinese native designers' demand for specialty fabrics encourages domestic mills to enhance original design capabilities and reduce dependence on imported fabrics. Meanwhile, overseas fabric brands seeking to enter the Chinese market must understand and adapt to this 'localization' need, offering solutions closer to Eastern aesthetics and functional requirements. On the other hand, Chinese mills' breakthroughs in bio-based and recycled materials provide new selling points for expanding overseas, especially under the EU's increasingly stringent sustainability regulations.