CHINA DAILY | HONG KONG EDITION Tuesday, June 1, 2021 | 15 BUSINESSFOCUS Classical dress on the rise notably with Gen Z By ZHENG YIRAN China’s hanfu market has been attracting big investment in recent years, as the sector finds increasing favor with young consumers. Hanfu, the traditional clothing worn by the Han ethnicity for thou- sands of years, is growing in popu- larity as Chinese people become more confident about their national culture. This is causing capital to flow into the hanfu sector. In April, Shanghai-based hanfu manufacturing enterprise Shisanyu completed a financing round of over 100 million yuan ($15.72 mil- lion). Investors included Shanghai- based private equity firm Loyal Valley Capital, Shanghai-based vid- eo-sharing platform Bilibili, and Hong Kong-listed pop toy brand Pop Mart. The company completed its initial financing in October 2020. The company said that with the Fans of hanfu participate in a fashion show in Taiyuan, Shanxi province, on May 1. wei liang / china news service investment, it plans to continue to promote traditional Chinese culture and expand the product chain. Likewise, Chengdu-based hanfu brand CNWear and Hangzhou- based hanfu retail platform Dozen Millennia-old clothing back in vogue Sunshine, received investments in September and November, respec- tively. Dozen Sunshine said that the Young customers were the main consumption group sales expected to reach 10.16 billion fu suits during traditional Chinese Industry insiders said that in con- investment will be used to establish of hanfu, accounting for around 80 yuan ($1.6 billion). holidays, such as Spring Festival. trast to Western tailored modern new physical stores and expand its driving demand percent of total consumers. Currently, there are more than They also mix and match hanfu with clothing, hanfu has higher require- supply chain. for textile-based “The young generation’s buying 3,000 hanfu-related enterprises in common outfits during daily life. ments for raw materials, workman- An increasing number of hanfu power is rising and hanfu is gradu- China, among which over 60 per- “Me, my husband and my daugh- ship and tailoring. Certain enthusiasts are driving the invest- products used for ally becoming mass-market fashion cent were registered in the past ter and son all have our own hanfu manufacturing procedures such as ment surge. A recent report from as it is more a carrier of traditional five years, said business informa- suits, altogether adding up to 50 to embroidery can only be completed Guangzhou-based consultancy thousands of years culture than mere clothing,” Zhang tion provider Tianyancha. 60 sets. The price of each set ranges manually, and purely manual pro- iiMedia Research said China’s han- said. According to Tianyancha, in from 200 yuan to 5,000 yuan. I also duction means longer working fu-related industry maintained rap- By ZHENG YIRAN He added that popular shows fea- 2019, newly registered hanfu-relat- purchase handbags, headdresses times and higher costs, contribut- id growth last year, with the number [email protected] turing Chinese costume dramas ed enterprises stood at over 1,000, and earrings to match the suits,” ing to the high prices. of hanfu fans rising by over 70 per- also accelerated the development of while last year, the figure surpassed Wan said. Apart from the high-end market cent on an annualized basis Internet-savvy young people, or hanfu-related businesses. In addi- 800. From Jan 1 to May 13, there Wang Tata, a post-1990 office segment, inexpensive hanfu prod- between 2017 and 2020. Generation Z consumers, who tion, key opinion leaders’ recreation were 300 newly added hanfu-relat- clerk in Shanghai, became a hanfu ucts are also popular. Data from Ali- Among surveyed hanfu consum- often share their hobbies with oth- of movie characters wearing hanfu ed companies in China. fan since junior high school. In col- baba’s Taobao platform showed ers, 40.5 percent purchased hanfu ers, are driving the popularity of also drew in millions of online audi- Wan Yue, a post-1980s mother of lege, she joined a hanfu club, where that hanfu priced between 100 products because they were fasci- traditional Chinese garments like ence members. two, became a hanfu enthusiast she and other members shared yuan and 300 yuan took up over 60 nated by the cultural origins, 36.9 hanfu. Typically when one talks of tradi- back in 2009. As someone belong- information about affordable han- percent of sales, while products percent of consumers purchased Much of that interest can also be tional Chinese clothing, the first ing to the Han ethnic group, she fu stores, and organized outings over 500 yuan accounted for rough- them because of the appearance of traced back to the country’s word that comes up is qipao. Some said that she has always been eager wearing hanfu. ly 30 percent of sales. the clothing, while 33.6 percent impressive economic growth and people even call it “the China to wear clothing that is representa- When Wang graduated and start- Jiang Hui, founder of e-com- hoped to carry forward traditional growing international presence in Dress”. However, if one is faithful to tive of her community. ed to make money on her own, she merce platform Maoke123.com, Chinese culture, said the report. the last few years. With China history, hanfu is more worthy of “Seeing people around me dress- traveled at least once a month, said that hanfu is a one-in-a-mil- With the rapidly expanding mar- becoming more self-confident in the title. As opposed to qipao, ing up in their traditional gar- often wearing hanfu. lion product with “five highs” — ket, industry players are actively recent years, people are once which has only been around for ments, I have also often wished to “I’ve worn hanfu in the Tengger high per customer transactions, looking to diversify their product again expressing interest in tradi- three hundred years or so, hanfu find a dress that depicts the culture Desert in northwestern China, at high gross profit margins, high portfolios by making inroads in tional dresses and garments, has been around for some three of my ethnic group,” she said. the beach in Pingtan, Fujian prov- repurchase rates, high friend-sell areas such as hanfu experience which in turn has given a new millennia. In 2009, Wan joined a hanfu fan ince, in the Great Tang All Day Mall rates and high growth rates — and houses, integrating daily wear lease of life to hanfu-related busi- Hanfu gets its name from the club. Apart from merely buying the in Xi’an, Shaanxi province, as well enterprises should grasp business with hanfu elements and hanfu- nesses. Chinese people themselves, most garments, she began to learn about as in the Forbidden City in Beijing. opportunities and tap into the themed animations, comics and Zhang Yi, chief analyst at iiMedia of whom are members of the Han the culture and history behind the Wherever the scenery matches, I market. games. Research, said during an interview ethnic group. Meanwhile, fu clothing. wear hanfu,” she said. “Hanfu enterprises should inte- For example, Shisanyu teamed with online fashion media Vogue means clothing. Therefore, hanfu Each suit has its own cultural and When asked about the money she grate online and offline channels to up with Tencent’s popular smart- Business that from a niche hobby to designates the traditional clothing historic background, and is designed spends on hanfu, Wang said the build a complete sales system. They phone-based video game King of a fashionable trend, the populariza- worn by the Han ethnic group for certain occasions, she said. average price of a hanfu suit she should also work on brand opera- Glory, NetEase’s role-playing game tion of hanfu is being driven by between the Huang Di or the Yel- Wan’s husband is also a hanfu purchases is usually hundreds of tion to enhance business scale and Justice Online and Chinese TV dra- young customers. low Emperor era and late Ming enthusiast, and they hosted their yuan. However, she noted that the influence,” said Huang Zhengneng, ma Serenade of Peaceful Joy, and Research firm CBNData esti- (1368-1644) and early Qing (1644- wedding ceremony wearing grand market price varies, and some high- founder of Hangzhou-based fash- launched co-branded hanfu. It mates that in recent years, hanfu 1911) dynasties. gowns — the highest-standard of quality hanfu suits are priced at ion brand Xyzstar. also inked a deal with West Lake consumers are becoming increas- According to data from peo- hanfu. Instead of wearing Western over 10,000 yuan. Some emerging business oppor- scenic spot officials in Hangzhou, ingly younger on average, with the ple.cn, Chinese hanfu consumers wedding dresses and suits, the cou- Guangzhou-based customized tunities should also be recognized. Zhejiang province, and estab- post-1990 and post-1995 genera- surpassed 2 million in 2018, triple ple thought it would be better to cel- hanfu manufacturer Minghuatang For example, hanfu showrooms that lished a brick-and-mortar experi- tions contributing to an increasing the 2017 levels. A recent report from ebrate the special moment of their is known as the “Hermes of hanfu”. enable consumers to experience ence hall. amount of expenditure. Guangzhou-based consultancy life wearing costumes of their own A hand-woven golden threaded tis- hanfu and enjoy their afternoon tea “In recent years, the hanfu sector A report jointly released by iiMedia Research estimated that by culture. sue sells for 7,800 yuan, while a time, hanfu rental stores and chil- has evolved into a greater one. Han- Shanghai-based business media the end of this year, the number of Today, the hanfu-loving couple whole set of hanfu decorated with dren’s hanfu all enjoy great business fu-related industries include activi- Yicai and T-mall showed that in people using hanfu products in Chi- have a daughter and a son.