For a long time, China's manufacturing industry has been located at the bottom of the "smile curve", and its main production capacity is concentrated in non-strategic core links such as processing, manufacturing, and assembly. However, in the context of the new era, as a representative of a new generation of Chinese global enterprises, SHEIN has broken through through continuous innovation and practice with a unique on-demand production "small single quick reverse" flexible chain model, promoting the continuous optimization of China's clothing chain and the continuous upgrading of the industry, breaking the curse of "smile curve", and helping Chinese manufacturing to climb from the bottom of the smile curve to both ends.
Since 2014, SHEIN has continued to build a flexible ** chain in Panyu, Guangzhou, using technology-driven digital means to empower a number of ** businesses. In Panyu, Guangzhou, there are a large number of small and medium-sized garment manufacturers, from fabric procurement to processing and production, there are natural location advantages.
According to the statistics of the Guangdong Garment and Apparel Industry Association, there are more than 40,000 enterprises engaged in the garment industry in Panyu, Guangzhou alone, and there are hundreds of first-class merchants who have cooperated with SHEIN. The products and production capacity of these first-class companies are different, and the common thing is that a conspicuous digital screen stands at the front of the production workshop, and the numbers on the screen jump and flash, updating the styles, orders and production capacity of the day in the factory in real time.
Most of the best merchants do not have the ability to be systematic and intelligent before cooperating with SHEIN, but after accessing SHEIN's on-demand production flexible chain model, they can achieve full-link informatization upgrade through digital system design and development, order taking, scheduling, stocking, warehousing, logistics, monitoring, reconciliation and other links. With the help of SHEIN, the production efficiency of the first-class merchants has been improved, the stability of supply has been improved, and the matching accuracy between the first-class and the demand side has been significantly improved, which means that the industrial waste has been greatly reduced and the products are more competitive.
Silk Ling clothing is one of the revenue enterprises. After the sudden stagnation of foreign trade orders, Silk Ling clothing was once in trouble. However, in the first year of cooperation with SHEIN, the sales volume of Silk Ling clothing exceeded 800,000 pieces, and since then, the sales performance has doubled year by year, and now the sales volume has increased by more than 3 times, becoming one of SHEIN's high-quality merchants.
Its person in charge said that everything is due to the digital-oriented production management model led by SHEIN. From front-end production to back-end management, SHEIN has built a one-stop flexible infrastructure for partners in the small order fast response ecosystem. It is understood that the lead time of traditional clothing manufacturing is usually 3-6 months, and it takes about 21-33 days from design to product delivery for ZARA, while SHEIN only takes 7-14 days.
In an automated printing factory in Xinji Village, Nancun Township, after overseas consumers place an order, the fabric can be quickly printed and sent to the factory to complete the production of ready-to-wear garments. The fine division of labor of enterprises in the entire industrial chain such as fabric, lining, printing and dyeing, buttons, zippers, etc., is comparable to the mobile phone manufacturing industry.
In addition, SHEIN also continues to provide all-round support for the best businessmen needed for flexible on-demand production, management training, factory construction, etc. And announced that in the next five years, it will continue to invest 500 million yuan to continue to deepen the empowerment of first-class businesses in technological innovation, training support, factory expansion and community services.
In 2023 alone, SHEIN has carried out more than 620 trainings, and carried out national vocational skill level recognition during the same period to cultivate professional and excellent technical and management talents for the whole industry. By the end of 2023, SHEIN has helped more than 130 cooperative factories upgrade 430,000 square meters of factory buildings, benefiting 220,000 people.
A number of new industrial parks have also been set up in Guangzhou, Zhaoqing and Qingyuan in Guangdong Province in recent years. Among them, the total investment of the first-chain project in the Shein Bay Area in Guangzhou has reached 10 billion yuan, and it will build a first-chain warehousing and logistics center integrating operation and warehousing, stocking, picking, distribution, and delivery; The industrial parks in Zhaoqing and Qingyuan will help transform the local garment manufacturing industry and promote the development of import and export.
With the technology, system and standardized method in hand, SHEIN has woven a large network of smart chains, focusing on building an all-round layout with domestic as the core and global as the supplement, and further strengthening the influence of China's fashion industry in the global market. The left hand holds a mature and efficient flexible chain, which can quickly respond to diversified market demand; The right hand directly touches the consumer and accurately grasps the pulse of global fashion. In this sea of stars, SHEIN is sketching a future picture of vitality and infinite possibilities for Chinese clothing to go overseas.