The Chinese textile company Shanghai Jingqingrong Garment, which supplies clothing to multinational fashion chains such as Japan’s Uniqlo and the Swedish companies H&M and Cos, will open its first textile factory outside of China in Catalonia, Spain. This is the result of an investment project by the textile company supported by the Catalan government. It is a current example of the trend of Chinese clothing and textile manufacturers to increasingly locate in Europe.
The Shanghai Jingqingrong textile factory is located in the Catalan town of Ripollet, a few kilometers north of Barcelona, in the Vallès Occidental region. The management of the plant is preparing to open in the first half of 2024 and create around 30 jobs. This is the result of an investment of around 3 million euros committed by Shanghai Jingqingrong Garment to launch a new international knitwear production line. The production of knitwear is a category in which textile companies in Catalonia have traditionally specialized. The image of the industrial area has attracted the Chinese company’s attention, said Roger Torrent, minister of enterprise and employment for the Catalan government, whose ministry is supporting the initiative through competition agency Acció.
“It is no coincidence that Chinese companies like Shanghai Jingqingrong Garment are launching their international expansion strategies from Catalonia, one of the most industrialized areas in Europe and one of the most important gateways to the continent,” Torrent said in a government statement. He points to the fact that “Chinese companies have invested more than 1 billion euros in Catalonia in the last five years,” in “projects that have led to the creation of more than 2,000 jobs.”
Suppliers from Uniqlo, H&M and Cos
Shanghai Jingqingrong Garment was founded in 2004 and counts fashion chains such as Uniqlo, H&M and Cos among its customers. The company specializes in all processes related to the production of clothing, from design to production and subsequent global distribution in different regions of the world.
From the first half of 2024, these tasks will also be carried out from Catalonia, where the new production facility will join the operations the textile company currently has in Shanghai and the Chinese provinces of Henan and Anhui. These production centers employ around 2,000 people and have a production capacity of around 800,000 garments per month, from where they serve the textile company’s commercial relationships with companies in various regions of the world. Customers primarily include companies from the European Union, Japan, the USA and Canada, which achieve an annual export volume of around 25 million US dollars (22.8 million euros).
“Soft power” China
China exercises “soft power” in various parts of the world, the government of Catalonia reports in a statement. The textile company was selected by Minister Torrent and was part of the delegation that visited China in October 2023. The trip to the Asian giant was aimed at boosting trade and attracting new foreign investment projects in the region, according to the Catalan government. The government also wanted to determine the region’s potential for Chinese companies. Local production using raw materials from China could be an accurate answer to the needs of companies in a variety of sectors, including textiles.
In the fashion industry, it is known as “nearshoring” when companies that previously decided to produce in distant countries produce closer to home again. This can mean that companies produce in their home country or on the continent where they are based. Much of the production today still takes place in Asia, but popular producing countries close to Europe include Turkey and Morocco.
Nearshoring became increasingly popular during the pandemic due to unstable supply chains between Asia and Europe. Producing closer to home usually means more flexibility through shorter delivery times.
Chinese companies in Catalonia and the province of Barcelona “have received 1.16 billion euros in foreign investment from China in the last five years,” said Torent. These investments have “led to the creation of 2,100 new jobs,” reports the Catalan government, citing figures from Acció derived from data from the Financial Times’ fDi Markets. Building on this profile of relations between China and Catalonia, “there are currently 114 subsidiaries of Chinese companies in Catalonia”, for which “Acció has promoted several initiatives in recent years to facilitate the establishment of Chinese companies in Catalonia, such as the Barcelona China’s project European Logistics Centre”, better known as “Barceloc”. This project is a collaboration with the Port of Barcelona, the city administration and several specialized logistics companies. The project is also known as “China Desk”.
“In addition,” continued Torret, “in recent years, several cooperation agreements have been signed with companies and government bodies to promote technological cooperation and intensify commercial relations,” such as now with the textile company Shanghai Jingqingrong Garment, located in Catalonia could settle down.
This article originally appeared on FashionUnited.es. Translated from Dutch and edited by Simone Preuss.