Fujian firm's cool clothing wins fans

An employee of Jinjiang Aiqinghai Clothing Manufacturing Co Ltd demonstrates a jacket fitted with fans. [Dong Yanjun / For China Daily]

Employees of a clothing company based in Quanzhou, Fujian province, have been busily making a special kind of clothing that is equipped with fans, and such clothing has brought coolness to factory workers in Vietnam, as the country has seen scorching temperatures this summer.

A large number of factories in Vietnam are not equipped with air conditioning or fans, and a growing demand for such clothing mainly comes from factory workers and outdoor operators.

So far this year, Quanzhou Jiechao Langren Clothing Co Ltd has exported more than 300,000 items of clothing equipped with fans, and these have mainly been exported to Vietnam.

The company's export volume jumped 50 percent over last year. It is the fourth year that the company has been involved in the business, and it has seen particularly booming sales in 2023, owing to the hot weather.

"The fans installed inside the clothes can be easily removed and recharged. Each is sold for about 60 yuan ($8.4) to 70 yuan, depending on different materials and manufacturing techniques, and the clothing is also sunproof. We mainly rely on small profits and quick sales," said Ke Chaomin, general manager of Quanzhou Jiechao Langren Clothing.

"Workers who cut rubber in the forest are afraid of mosquito bites and high temperatures, and they are suitable for long-sleeved clothing with fans," Ke said.

Besides exports, the company also sells some of its products to domestic steelworks. In addition to Fujian, the firm has set up major production lines in Jiujiang, Jiangxi province.

In the past few years, small and medium-sized enterprises have achieved quantitative and qualitative growth in China, making an important contribution to social and economic development.

"Private enterprises, mainly small and medium-sized enterprises, have become the largest foreign trade operational entities in China, accounting for more than half of the growth of foreign trade. Small and medium-sized enterprises are rapidly developing and growing, making them the largest and most dynamic type of enterprise in China," Xu Xiaolan, vice-minister of industry and information technology, said during a recent news conference in Beijing.

Meanwhile, Jinjiang Aiqinghai Clothing Manufacturing Co Ltd is also busy making clothing equipped with fans. Since the beginning of this year, the workshop has seen a high demand.

"Domestic environmental sanitation workers, traffic police and engineering workers have favored such clothing. We have expanded our sales channels to include major e-commerce platforms such as Taobao, Douyin and Kuaishou," said Zhang Huazi, general manager of Jinjiang Aiqinghai Clothing Manufacturing.

Quanzhou Jiechao Langren Clothing has now shifted part of its operations to making heated vests, long-sleeved clothes and blankets.

A heated cotton vest made by the company sells at 45 yuan, which is significantly cheaper than a down vest. Equipped with heating pads, which can be removed and recharged, the company mainly sells such clothing to Belgium and Ukraine.

"We recently received an order for 100,000 heated vests from Belgium. Most customers order the products in advance, as it requires some time to ship them. At first, each vest was equipped with two heating pads at the waist. Now, they have 19 such pads and feel warmer," Ke said.