From tailor to designer

Editor’s note: As machines continue to replace people, workers must adapt and factories are in urgent need of transformation. In Zhili Town, Zhejiang Province, the children’s clothing designer Xu Songlin blazed a new trail to address this problem.

When he was 19 years old, Xu Songlin came to Zhili Town with a relative and found a sewing job in a children’s clothing factory. Back then, a suit of children’s clothing was sold for dozens of yuan and Xu Songlin could earn five yuan from each one he made.

Zhili, a town famous for producing children’s clothing, is home to more than 8,000 garment enterprises.

However, most of the factories here are engaged in OEM production. They do not design the clothes, nor do they maintain their own brands. “According to our calculations, the profit margin for producing children’s clothing is just about 15 percent” said Xu Songlin.

Over the past two years, the factory introduced large-scale automated production equipment. As machines continued to replace people, Xu Songlin was laid off.

 “ I needed to change in order to earn more money and develop my career,” Xu Songlin said. He studied clothing design at his own expense at a school in Suzhou. After graduation, Xu Songlin returned to Zhili and began to work at the design centre at a children’s clothing factory.

Today, Xu Songlin is already the chief designer of a well-known children’s clothing brand. In Zhili, the number of design teams has increased from 40 in the past to more than 500 today. They introduce more than 1,000 new products every season and respond quickly to the demands of the market. Xu Songlin’s company does not have a single production line but has opened more than 730 outlets across China.

In order to help enterprises improve their levels of design and expand sales channels, Zhili has invested nearly 50 million yuan to set up design, quality inspection centres and e-commerce incubators.

 

From tailor to designer

Editors note: As machines continue to replace people, workers must adapt and factories are in urgent need of transformation. In Zhili Town, Zhejiang Province, the childrens clothing designer Xu Songlin blazed a new trail to address this problem. When he was 19 years old, Xu Songlin came to Zhili Town with a relative and found a sewing job in a childrens clothing factory. Back then, a suit of childrens clothing was sold for dozens of yuan and Xu Songlin could earn five yuan from each one he made. Zhili, a town famous for producing childrens clothing, is home to more than 8,000 garment enterprises. However, most of the factories here are engaged in OEM production. They do not design the clothes, nor do they maintain their own brands. According to our calculations, the profit margin for producing childrens clothing is just about 15 percent said Xu Songlin. Over the past two years, the factory introduced large-scale automated production equipment. As machines continued to replace people, Xu Songlin was laid off. I needed to change in order to earn more money and develop my career, Xu Songlin said. He studied clothing design at his own expense at a school in Suzhou. After graduation, Xu Songlin returned to Zhili and began to work at the design centre at a childrens clothing factory. Today, Xu Songlin is already the chief designer of a well-known childrens clothing brand. In Zhili, the number of design teams has increased from 40 in the past to more than 500 today. They introduce more than 1,000 new products every season and respond quickly to the demands of the market. Xu Songlins company does not have a single production line but has opened more than 730 outlets across China. In order to help enterprises improve their levels of design and expand sales channels, Zhili has invested nearly 50 million yuan to set up design, quality inspection centres and e-commerce incubators.