Shenzhen International Fashion Brand Fair 2013

Hot off the heels of Hong Kong Fashion Week comes the 13th China International Fashion Brand Fair held just across Hong Kong's border in Shenzhen this week. This was my first time at the fair and I was utterly amazed by the sheer magnitude of the displays and the number of people attending. With queues up to 500 metres long just to get in, I was lucky enough to secure a VIP pass and spent the day marvelling at the size and scale of over 3,000 exhibitors' displays, an indication of the growth and potential of the Chinese domestic fashion market.

With a population of 11 million in Shenzhen alone, plus another 105 million people living in the surrounding Guangdong province, Shenzhen's fashion industry is a force to be reckoned with. In 2012, Shenzhen's garment industry crossed the RMB 100 billion (US$16.3 billion) mark (source: Global Sources), so it's no wonder brands are concentrating more and more in the Chinese domestic market.

However, with so much potential in the market, more effort is still required in the effective marketing and branding of these up-and-coming fashion labels. One particular example I came across was a brand called "MyScissors", whose slogan was "MyScissors is always with you". It definitely left many foreign visitors (and myself included) scratching their heads thinking what a funny way to spend millions on an advertising campaign that doesn't really make sense.

The International Brand Fair will be held for the rest of this week and concludes on 13 July 2013.