March 8, China International Textile Yarn (Spring and Summer) Exhibition, horse skirt clothing fabrics. Picture/IC
“The color of this horse-faced skirt is a very noble purple-black color, with patterns such as flowers, birds, and jade trees embroidered on it. The style is a classic five-meter hem with six pairs of pleats, and the design that is tight at the top and wide at the bottom makes it more elegant and elegant. I like it. Sisters can place orders directly." At 11 o'clock in the night, in a Hanfu live broadcast room in Hangzhou, Zhejiang, the female anchor was holding a horse-faced skirt and introducing it enthusiastically to the camera.
A few minutes later, the horse-faced skirt, with 3,000 pieces in stock, was sold out.
When it comes to the first popular clothing item for everyone in 2024, the horse-faced skirt is well deserved. During the Spring Festival, young people wearing hairpins and horse-faced skirts emerge one after another in Chinese-style gardens such as West Lake in Hangzhou, the Forbidden City in Beijing, and Xi'an City Wall, or under red walls and golden tiles, and even as far away as France and Australia on the other side of the ocean. The dignified and grand national style all reflects the beauty of Chinese clothing.
The enthusiasm of young people not only makes the horse-faced skirt a "New Year shirt", but also promotes the rapid explosion of the Hanfu industry.
For a time, topics such as "The supply of horse-faced skirts in Caoxian County exceeds demand" and "Taobao sold more than 730,000 horse-faced skirts, enough to cover 105 football fields" remained high.
“I’ve been busy making horse-faced skirts every day recently, and when I go to bed at night, my dreams are filled with scenes of working overtime.” Wei Qing, who runs a clothing factory in Shandong, told the Beijing News Shell Finance reporter that the popularity of horse-faced skirts made him and Colleagues entered the busy mode early and did not take a break during the Spring Festival. Now they are even more busy preparing for the May Day holiday. "Every day, thousands of horse-faced skirts are sold out online, and orders come in like snowflakes. No one wants to miss this wave of 'wealth and wealth'."
Young people "sweep goods" horse-faced skirts
By the West Lake in Hangzhou, Zhejiang, 26-year-old Zhejiang girl Lin Yi wore a horse-faced skirt she just bought. She excitedly took her best friend, who was also dressed in Hanfu, through the Broken Bridge, Baidi and other scenic spots, and kept posing in various poses for photos.
"The horse-faced skirt is so suitable for taking pictures. The elegant classical beauty comes to your face through the lens." Lin Yi told Shell Finance reporter that she was deeply attracted by the horse-faced skirt when she first saw it. and on the beltThe exquisite embroidery adds to the gorgeousness of the clothing and makes people fascinated. ”
In recent times, horse-faced skirts have become a hot item of clothing that is highly sought after by young men and women. The so-called horse-faced skirt was originally the most typical style of women's clothing during the Ming and Qing Dynasties. After hundreds of years of changes, the style has changed from the freshness and elegance of the Ming Dynasty to the gorgeousness and wealth of the Qing Dynasty, to the beauty and simplicity of the Republic of China. Now after many improvements, it is more suitable for today's women's daily wear.
Shell Finance reporters learned that this costume with ancient Chinese elements immediately attracted many Hanfu enthusiasts as soon as it was launched. Its noble character and adaptability to multiple scenarios have also allowed it to successfully break through the industry and attract people who have never experienced Hanfu before.
“Horse-faced skirts are so popular now.” Zhao Yu, a post-00s generation who has been involved in the Hanfu industry many years ago, lamented that not only did she see tourists wearing horse-faced skirts at any time during the Spring Festival, but she also saw colleagues wearing horse-faced skirts at any time after work. Wearing a horse-faced skirt, "Unlike traditional Hanfu, horse-faced skirts can meet the needs of daily life and work at the same time. Coupled with the high-end sense brought by national style elements, it has naturally become the choice of more women."
On March 18, a reporter from Shell Finance noticed on social platforms that “Horse Face Skirt” has been played 20.14 billion times on Douyin platform, and the topic has been read 150 million times on Weibo. On Xiaohongshu, many fashion bloggers have posted videos of how to wear horse-faced skirts, introducing style designs and matching plans in detail. The replies were filled with messages from netizens who were interested in and willing to buy the horse-faced skirt.
The popularity among young people has led many merchants to spot business opportunities, and a number of horse-face skirt brands have flooded into e-commerce platforms.
A reporter from Shell Finance searched the e-commerce platform with the keyword "horse face skirt" and found that there are hundreds of stores selling related products, with prices ranging from tens to thousands of yuan depending on the style and material. . One of them, a horse-faced skirt priced at 178 yuan, has sold more than 80,000 pieces.
"Business has been particularly booming recently, with people placing orders almost every day." An online store staff member said, "Especially the popular models priced between 200 yuan and 300 yuan. Many sizes are out of stock, and we are constantly urging customers to buy them." The factory is working overtime to rush production and replenish goods for sale as quickly as possible."
According to Taobao platform data, horse-faced skirts have become the most popular item in the Hanfu category, with more than 730,000 pieces sold during the "Double Eleven" period in 2023 alone. In addition, according to statistics from the Cao County E-commerce Service Center, sales of horse-faced skirts in January 2024 have reached about 400 million.
The factory encountered a situation of "flooding wealth and wealth", and the machine did not stop for more than 10 hours
"Almost every day there are a large number of orders from all over the country." Wei Qing told Shell Finance reporters that the popularity of horse-faced skirts has allowed many Hanfu merchants and traditional clothing brands to see opportunities. "Now everyone is producing at full capacity, so we must seize it." This wave of 'wealth and wealth'."
As the market heat continues to heat up, Shandong and ZhejiangMany manufacturers in other places entered busy mode early.
"I have been very busy every day recently. The last batch of large goods has not been finished yet, and new orders have arrived." Since the end of last year, Wei Qing has been receiving orders for horse-faced skirts one after another. After entering 2024, production has completely reached a climax. "Orders have been scheduled until mid-April. The machines in the factory have been running non-stop for almost 10 hours, and we dare not shut down at all."
In Wei Qing's factory, machines are cutting fabric. On the table next to it, workers sewed the newly pleated fabric according to size. The shelves on one side are filled with packaged horse-faced skirts, waiting for the logistics guy to come to your door.
Shell Finance reporters learned that the production process of a horse-faced skirt usually requires nearly 10 processes, from blanking to cutting and pattern making, and then the machine sews the pieces of cloth into shape, and then workers inspect them one by one until the final packaging and delivery.
"I just finished the Spring Festival orders, and before I even took a breather, I started preparing for the May Day holiday." Wei Qing told Shell Finance reporters that in addition to receiving dozens of order calls every day, he also receives customers who come to purchase goods from time to time. , "In the past, we usually prepared the goods first and waited for customers to choose, but now we buy whatever is available in the warehouse when customers come. Many customers even pay half the price directly after seeing the design drawings.
In order to seize this opportunity, Wei Qing traveled to the factory workshop and warehouse every day, constantly urging workers to increase production. "Normally, workers get off work at 6 o'clock, but now they take turns working overtime until 9 o'clock or even later. All the machines in the factory We are all working hard to make orders, just to finish them as soon as possible and receive new orders."
As busy as Wei Qing is An Lei, who runs a clothing factory in Zhejiang.
As early as the beginning of last year, An Lei began to study the shape and style of horse-faced skirts. During that time, he kept reading through the design drafts submitted by original designers from all over the world, and if he liked the design, he would contact the other party for cooperation as soon as possible.
"Designing a horse-faced skirt is not easy. In order to avoid being the same, we will embed unique elements and colors into the design." An Lei told Shell Finance reporters that the company has sold tens of thousands of horse-faced skirts. For example, in addition to choosing purple and gold to show nobility, it is also specially designed to be tight at the top and wide at the bottom. "A slightly wider skirt can not only reflect the elegance and increase the sense of elegance, but also stretch the body curve."
When the renderings of this horse-faced skirt were uploaded to the fan base, it quickly triggered a wave of positive feedback. A channel dealer immediately contacted him and ordered 3,000 skirts, expressing his willingness for long-term cooperation.
Obtaining originality is only the first step. An Lei is well aware that almost all his colleagues in the country are working overtime to prepare for the upcoming May Day holiday, "I dare not take a break at all. Now every time I pass by the factory of my counterpart, I can hear the sound of machines running. If the speed falls behind the other party, the order will be replaced by the counterpart." Snatched."
Nowadays, all other traditional Hanfu in An Lei’s factory have been stopped, and all fineAll the effort is invested in the horse-faced skirt. Dozens of workers in the factory stay in front of the production line every day. Even he himself "set up camp" in the factory a few months ago. When he is sleepy, he will sleep on the sofa in the office for a while, and when he wakes up, he will cooperate with the workers in cutting. Fabric and sewing skirts.
"Horse-faced skirts have indeed brought huge orders and profits to manufacturers." An Lei told Shell Finance reporters, "Many skirts have just been produced and are packed away by customers before they can be put on the shelves. The only thing I think about now is regret. Buy more machines, otherwise you can earn more."
The transformation of curtain fabrics is a gold mine, the next code of wealth for "new Chinese style" dressing?
The popularity of horse-faced skirts not only made Hanfu manufacturers a lot of money, but also led to the explosion of surrounding industries.
"We are now cooperating with five or six garment factories to provide them with horse skirt fabrics. In the past few months, nearly a hundred pieces of fabric have been produced every day." Zhao Yue, who runs a fabric factory in Haining, Zhejiang, told Shell Finance reporters that earlier the factory The main products are sofa fabrics and curtain fabrics in various colors. Since the horse-faced skirt became popular in 2023, under the influence of his peers, he began to transform into a horse-faced skirt fabric business.
"At first, I was worried about whether there would really be that many orders, but I soon found out that I couldn't handle it at all." Zhao Yue said excitedly, "The orders were so overwhelming that even the jacquard machines in the factory couldn't stop."
According to media reports, there are more than 100 textile companies in Xucun Town, Haining City, Zhejiang Province, engaged in the production of horse-faced skirts and new Chinese clothing fabrics. The daily production of fabrics reaches more than 30,000 meters, which can be made into nearly 7,000 horse-faced skirts.
In order to grab more customers, Zhao Yue, in addition to constantly traveling to Shandong, Guangzhou and other places to attract orders, also began to study the patterns and styles of fabrics. "After all, the curtain fabrics in the early days were thicker and the patterns were mainly monochrome or dark flowers." , while horse-faced skirts tend to be more refined and elegant. To get more orders, the quality of the fabric must be continuously improved."
Similar to Zhao Yue, Lao He, who runs a cloth shop in Keqiao, Zhejiang, is busy receiving customers from all over the country. He found that with the craze for horse-faced skirts, more and more manufacturers began to favor patterns and colors with more Chinese elements when choosing fabrics. After some inquiries, I learned that the company was no longer satisfied with the design and production of horse-faced skirts and Hanfu, but was gradually getting involved in Chinese-style clothing with national style elements.
"Affected by the horse-faced skirt, the audience began to become more and more interested in Hanfu. However, compared with traditional Hanfu, which is more cumbersome to wear and has narrow applicability, more people still prefer casual clothes that have similar elements but are more suitable for going out on the street." An Lei said, "Clothing manufacturers have spotted this potential market. In addition to continuing to bet on traditional Hanfu, they are also trying to design this new 'Chinese style costume'."
In fact, this type of Chinese clothing has quietly become popular in the market in recent years. A reporter from Shell Finance noticed on the Xiaohongshu platform that there were more than 2.6 million notes related to “New Chinese Style Outfits”. The playback volume of similar keywords on Douyin has also reachedto 11.8 billion plays. In addition, since January 2024, the search volume of "new Chinese style" related to Chinese style clothing on Taobao has increased by 683% month-on-month.
An Lei told Shell Finance reporters that as early as two years ago, he tried to "implant" Hanfu into regular clothes. In addition to incorporating Chinese style elements such as buckles, slanted lapels, and wide sleeves, men's Hanfu has also been changed into cardigans and other styles that are more convenient for travel. "Although the popularity and sales are far less than the current horse-faced skirt, it has still accumulated a lot of popularity." Many fans can now sell hundreds of similar costumes every month."
"Compared with traditional Hanfu, new Chinese-style clothing undoubtedly has greater potential in terms of audience, consumer demand and future trends." Wei Qing also said that the popularity of horse-faced skirts has verified the future of this trend and will inevitably attract more people. Many clothing manufacturers have poured into it. "After all, as young people become the main consumers and love traditional culture, 'new Chinese style clothing' will continue to explode in the future."
