As more people are eager to explore the world, outdoor clothing has subtly made its way into everyone’s wardrobe. Do you still remember the outstanding performance of those “you may not have heard of but definitely used” fabrics and materials? Even outdoor novices can easily rattle off benchmark features like waterproofing, breathability, and windproofing. Of course, as the user base continues to expand, there are also growing demands for fashion and eco-friendliness in outdoor apparel.
June 30 – July 3, 2016Come to Nanjing to focus on the Asia Outdoor Exhibition, keep up with industry trends, study the latest outdoor products, and gain a comprehensive understanding of mainstream fabric and material trends. This year,the Asia Outdoor Exhibition Fabrics & Materials Zonefeatures a net exhibition area of 1,500 square meters, with nearly 80 fabric and material exhibitors. Renowned domestic and international fabric and material companies such as the Taiwan Textile Federation-organized Taiwanese pavilion, PrimaLoft, Toray, Huayang Textile, Yangshi Textile, Shangyu Textile, Liansheng, Hengfeng, and others have chosen China’s most professional platform to showcase their latest functional textile technologies and cutting-edge outdoor styles.
Main Fabric Trends: Functionality vs. Fashion
In 2016, the Asia Outdoor Exhibition, together with representatives from the Fabrics & Materials Zone, discussed and summarized the mainstream trends for the coming period.FunctionalityandFashionability— both are essential. Addressing both is the only way to meet the increasingly high demands of users.
Functional Outdoor: Emphasizes the functionality of fabrics required for sports and competition, suitable for professional outdoor activities. It demands certain performance standards in waterproofing, moisture permeability, and windproofing.
Fashionable Outdoor: Highlights personalized color and style, suitable for urban leisure such as short trips and road trips. Functionally, it only needs to meet basic outdoor requirements, offering features like UV protection, mosquito repellence, and simple wind and water resistance.
● Skin jackets, which have been all the rage in recent years, face fierce competition, with profit margins for fabrics having become minimal. The Korean-style patchwork colors popular in previous years have also grown tiresome for consumers. This spring and summer, elastic fabrics will be a trending choice. Light, thin windbreakers with certain moisture permeability and waterproofing suitable for spring and autumn will be more readily accepted. In the broader context, eco-friendliness remains a key element.
● The hiking series mainly features popular colors (neutral blues, bright yellows, and other simple tones), paired with dark-colored outfits. The business travel series highlights bold blues and deep pinks with high saturation. Eye-catching patterns and prints are receiving much attention, with designs integrating patterns and colors into the fabric. Different levels of color purity can make hues more vibrant and varied. If fabric suppliers can also recommend distinctive small accessories to garment clients and offer more styling advice, it will help foster better cooperation.
New Trend in the Fabric Industry: Branding
Domestic fabrics generally still exist in the industry as factories, but some fabric companies have begun to recognize the value of branding. They place greater emphasis on quality, creativity, technology, philosophy, and core values, focusing on brand image. Last year at the Asia Outdoor Exhibition, the first-everCOA Outdoor Summit Forumspecifically discussed the topic of “The Importance of Material Brands for the Growth of the Outdoor Market.” Outstanding domestic and international material and fabric brand representatives, including Mr. Tomas, founder of BRAIND, Mr. Huang Geng, Chairman and General Manager of Nanjing Biancheng Sports Goods Co., Ltd., Mr. Zhuang Songming, General Manager of the Apparel Division of Gore Industrial Products Trading (Shanghai) Co., Ltd., and Mr. Jochen Lagemann, General Manager for Eurasia at PrimaLoft, attended to explore the topic together. This undoubtedly brought new insights to domestic material suppliers.
When discussing advice for Chinese fabric brands, Mr. Tomas of BRAIND said: “To learn from successful international examples, Chinese fabric brands must first shed the identity of processing factories and create innovative products with patent protection. They should enhance product technology, establish brand image, and build consumer recognition and loyalty. In terms of awareness across the entire product value chain, fabric brands also need to increase investment. They must collaborate with well-known brands and platforms to successfully market themselves and make end customers aware of the fabric brands.”
The Asia Outdoor Exhibition consistently focuses on the field of professional outdoor gear. As a platform where brands vie for exposure — the Asia Outdoor Industry Awards — it serves as an evaluation platform that comprehensively considers innovation, design quality, functionality, workmanship, eco-friendliness, and safety.Asia Outdoor Industry AwardsStarting in 2014, a Material Innovation Award was added. That same year, the SURROUND!“ outdoor footwear technology introduced by GORE-TEX claimed the award for the first time. In 2015, the material brand PrimaLoft won this honor. Many people in China often wear outdoor clothing made with PrimaLoft materials without knowing it. PrimaLoft’s win has made the brand more relatable.
2014 Asia Outdoor Industry Awards Material Innovation Award GORE-TEX
2015 Asian Outdoor Industry Awards Material Innovation Award-winning product PrimaLoft
This year, Shaoxing Yangshi Textile Co., Ltd., an exhibitor at the Asia Outdoor Exhibition, joined hands with Equipment Cool and partnered with the Asia Outdoor Exhibition to launch a “customized” event targeting end consumers—“Finding the Yangshi Spokesperson.” Exclusive test videos of each spokesperson will be released on the Asia Outdoor Exhibition platform. This is an excellent way to bring the Yangshi brand image into the hearts of consumers. In fact, this is not the first time Yangshi has closely collaborated with the Asia Outdoor Exhibition. In 2014, Yangshi Textile recycled mineral water bottles on-site at the exhibition and processed them into fabric, showcasing its commitment to environmental protection and technology. Yangshi’s various initiatives represent commendable efforts by domestic fabric companies in branding, and we look forward to even better development for Yangshi Textile.
Showcase your brand better—choose the Asia Outdoor Exhibition!
Whether you are an outdoor gear brand or a materials and accessories brand, as long as you have innovatively crafted products,Welcome to the 7th Asia Outdoor Industry Awards platform!Here, outstanding products stand out, and here, audiences and media can discover the value of products firsthand. In addition to traditional awards such as Gold Award, Silver Award, Eco Product Award, Women’s Product Award, Running & Sports Product Award, and Material Innovation Award, this year we have newly introduced the Water Sports Product Award and Kids Product Award. Just like the brands that never stop innovating, we never miss a glimmer of wisdom or a ray of design, and promoting great design to end users has always been the foundation of the Asia Outdoor Industry Awards!
Registration for the 7th Asia Outdoor Industry Awards:
Contact Person: Mr. Tao
Phone: 025-66925716
Email: taowenbo@nfexpo.com
From June 30 to July 3, 2016, at Nanjing International Expo Center, we sincerely present a higher-end and more multi-dimensional professional outdoor products trade show. The four-day exhibition is open only to professional visitors, and those who complete online pre-registration in advance can visit for free.Follow the WeChat official account “Asia Outdoor Show Service”, reply “Register” to access the quick pre-registration page. For more information, please visit the official website of the Asia Outdoor Show at www.asian-outdoor.com.