How do fabrics and sports brands interact?

In the process of product brand function development, fabric companies have always played a pivotal role. As the upstream of the industrial chain, it is the mission of the fabric companies to convey the latest raw materials and functional information to the downstream clothing brands at the fastest speed and in the most effective manner. It is also an important profit growth point. So we can see that in recent years, the development of functional fabrics has emerged in an endless stream. The rumblings and depravations that follow are commonplace. Of course, innovation is worth encouraging, but the value of most functions is not reflected.

In the final analysis, in this process, the feedback channels for upstream and downstream functional requirements have not been fully cleared. The dialogue between the reporter and Li Ning and the elegant bird is based on the functional requirements of the fabric.

Perceived functional fabrics with gold content

Functional fabrics have always been the focus of sports brand competition. From the perspective of development in recent years, the function of truly winning the market's high gold content is to allow consumers to immediately feel during the trial-wear process, for example, cool fabrics.

In 2008, Li Ning launched a cool sensation series. The market is very good and companies are continuing to pay attention to these fabrics. “The functions like coolness are called perceivable functions, that is to say, when consumers purchase it, they can personally feel that this will be the general trend of the functional development of fabrics.” Beijing Li Ning Co., Ltd. New Project Department Manager Lu Tieshan said, “In addition, the scented fabrics that companies are more concerned about are also perceptible. The microcapsules can be attached to the fabrics to produce aromas after finishing. Because everyone has different tastes for scent, the current production of such fabrics is relatively small. Another important feature of microcapsules is the ability to absorb odors, and from this perspective, the outlook for scented fabrics is still optimistic."

From ice yarns, memory fabrics to imitation cotton chemical fibers, noble birds continue to make breakthroughs in the study of raw material functions. According to Zhong Shiqiong, deputy director of the Corporate Apparel Development Center, Ice Yarn is further developed by the Birds R&D Center on the basis of traditional moisture-wicking fabrics. The fabric has a better perspiration effect than a general functional fabric and can quickly give the skin a cool feeling. The imitation memory fabric is characterized by rapid recovery and flattening. The general wear crease can be smoothed by hand, eliminating the need for ironing. Imitation cotton chemical fiber This fabric is mainly used for the pants of outdoor products of noble birds. It has the comfort of cotton materials, soft touch, good air permeability, and the strength of chemical fiber fabrics. It also has the function of “fast drying”. When people are outdoors, it is inevitable that they will accidentally wet their trousers. This material can be dried in a short period of time, and the time can be reduced by more than 50% compared with ordinary fabrics.

Nothing less stylish and comfortable

In the past two years of elegant bird fashion design, the application of fashion elements has become an important topic for noble bird designers, fashion and functionality will be cleverly combined. “In the new spring/summer 2011, elegant birds applied the classic 'court dress' elements to the T-shirts of functional fabrics and achieved customer acceptance. The use of wrinkles not only increases the amount of activity required during exercise, but also increases. The three-dimensional sense of clothing. In addition, the designer has also boldly used some of the jacquard fabric has never been used before. All these details of the breakthrough, the company's clothing into a new feeling." Zhong Shiqiong said.

It is not so much that companies are greedy when they are pursuing fashion, comfort, and functionality. It would be better to say that this is a real consumer market demand. Whether it is Li Ning or noble birds, sports brand positioning is gradually becoming younger and more fashionable. This is a big trend. “In 2011, there was a big breakthrough in innovation in product styles. To meet the young consumer groups that have grown up in the 1980s and 1990s, products have only kept close to young people and moved closer to the fashion trend, so as to be able to dominate the young consumer market. On the initiative to win." Zhong Shiqiong said, "This requires not only innovation in product modeling, but also reflected in the combination of materials and technology, functionality and comfort innovation."

For this reason, the product of the new season elegant bird has also made corresponding adjustments, the shoes introduced in the modeling, color and application of more vitality. According to Zhong Shiqiong, the detail design is more purposeful and pertinent, such as the enhancement of environmental performance, the application of recycled and environmentally friendly rubber, and the artificial design of one-piece weaving, etc.; in terms of performance breakthrough, lightweight material support bars and Oxford cloths The use of new technologies such as differentiation, flannel, and combinations of materials and colors will increase the price/performance ratio of products in this season, and the overall product performance will be greatly improved.

Hot selling point in the end who is manufacturing?

From the perspective of the transmission direction of the industry chain, fabric companies should be the first to come into contact with popular trends. It is a matter of course that they spread the selling point of the market downstream. In the view of garment companies, fabric companies often only undertake production and processing. The function of the selling point is still underpowered. This kind of disagreement has a long history. The debate on the market's “speech right” has actually undergone a lot of changes in the concept of both parties.

As Lu Tieshan introduced, long-term cooperation with Li Ning is based on the global top fabric suppliers. Their latest technology can be introduced to Li Ning in the shortest possible time. Although each clothing brand has different marketing methods, A certain function, for example, cool feeling, each brand feels worth doing in the summer, so clothing brand promotion, fabric companies continue to improve its function, which will form a major selling point in the market.

From this we can see that a win-win cooperation has reached a consensus between fabric companies and apparel companies. Li Ning's product development every quarter will come up with a clear plan, but also hope that fabric companies to feedback some new raw materials, new features information. However, Lu Tieshan also pointed out the insufficiency of domestic fabric enterprises. The planning cases provided by Japanese and Chinese Taiwanese fabric companies are in place. The combination of pictures and colors shows the use of fabrics. Product advantages are told to fashion designers in the most intuitive way. When domestic fabric companies recommend their own innovative products, they must also learn how to clearly display the use of fabrics. There are not many advantages to winning by price and winning by price.