Chinese enterprises accelerate the integration of upstream and downstream industrial chains

In recent years, China's labor-intensive product exports are facing more and more challenges due to rising domestic labor costs, frequent trade frictions in textile and apparel products, and fluctuations in the RMB exchange rate. In the third interview of the 123rd Canton Fair, the reporter found that many companies turned their attention to the upgrading of the product itself and the supporting service field. Through the integration of the upstream and downstream industry chains, the company's comprehensive competitiveness in the international market was enhanced.

Work hard around the product itself

Zhejiang Huilong Foreign Trade Co., Ltd. is a foreign trade enterprise mainly engaged in garment export. In the past, the company will produce garments according to the customer's design draft or sales concept. However, in recent years, the company has paid more attention to independent design, from passive production to active attack. The products have gained good reputation at major domestic and international exhibitions. “We will follow the trend of the international market, draw on the popular innovative ideas, and grasp the fashion elements of each quarter. The R&D team and the fabric factory will complete the preliminary design of the garments.” The company’s business is 25 salesmen. In an interview with the International Business Daily, Ke Wei said that with a good start, the rest is to complete the final product according to the requirements of different customers. “Before our clothes didn’t have their own design elements. When they visited the big merchants, they often ate 'closed doors’. After joining the original design, some big brands such as ZARA took the initiative to contact us.”

Not only that, but the company has also established a fixed relationship with the upstream factories, changing the situation of their previous battles. “In the past, the role of foreign trade companies was only to bridge the gap between customers and factories. However, as the price of commercial circulation became more transparent, the company and the factory changed from 'a single-unit cooperation' to 'how many orders per year'. Cooperation." Ke Wei told reporters that this is also part of the company's road to integration of industry and trade, allowing the company and the factory to establish a mutually beneficial and win-win cooperation mechanism. “In recent years, some foreign merchants have transferred processing orders to the Southeast Asian market, but this has little impact on us.” Feng Yitao, a 17-year salesman of Zhejiang Huiyuan Foreign Trade Co., Ltd., told reporters that this is from the company. High demand for product quality, which is not possible in countries with low labor costs such as Southeast Asia.

Zhejiang Huiyuan Foreign Trade Co., Ltd. is a foreign trade company mainly engaged in the export of professional functional shoes. Its biggest feature is to produce comfortable and safe working shoes according to the professional characteristics of mining workers and agricultural workers. "The raw materials of this kind of shoes are mainly rubber, and steel heads, steel plates, etc. are used as auxiliary materials. 80% of finished shoes are still hand-made, and the technical requirements are very strict." Feng Yitao said that the company and the largest customer US LACROSS brand After nearly 20 years of cooperation, the guarantees in technology, quality and labor efficiency are far superior to those in Southeast Asia.

Integrate upstream and downstream industry chains

According to Shi Wenlei, general manager of Zhejiang Native Produce and Animal Products Import and Export Group Co., Ltd., the core of the foreign trade industry is products and services. For labor-intensive industries, if quality control, efficiency improvement, and comprehensive cost control can be achieved in terms of services, it is the best service to customers, which is mainly through the integration of upstream and downstream industry chains. “The Group has established supporting relationships with a large number of upstream production enterprises, covering fabric selection, printing and dyeing, and then production and capital investment. In addition, the Group has its own national testing center, which can control the quality of fabrics to production. Effectively reduce production costs." Shi Wenlei told reporters that the group also set up a clothing design proofing center, which also played a strong supporting role in the development of new products.

Zhejiang Native Produce and Animal Products Import and Export Group Co., Ltd. has been committed to the integration of deep chemical and trade, and invested in the production and processing bases of Tongxiang Kaixing, Tonglu Kaisheng, Weideng Shoes, Duntou Brush, Lanxi Enze, etc. Means to improve the degree of automation in the production process, reduce production costs, and enhance the core competitiveness of export commodities.

At present, the group company has not yet formed an integration of industry and trade in the field of clothing. “Production-oriented enterprises are relatively easy to trade, but trade-oriented enterprises are relatively difficult to produce, and it is difficult to complete them in a short period of time. This is a direction to be considered in the future development of the group.” Shi Wenlei believes that the upstream and downstream industry chain The integration is a magic weapon to enhance the comprehensive competitiveness of labor-intensive industries.