Shandong's multi-level key industries are driving the transformation of new growth drivers

Jinan in Style International Fashion Week officially opened in Jinan International Fashion Creative Center, Shandong, China. The three-day international fashion week (November 19 to 21) hosted by City of Jinan Government and Department of Industry and Information Technology of Shandong Province, presented by Asian Couture Federation (ACF), Lixia District People's Government of Jinan, Jinan Commerce Bureau, Jinan Culture and Tourism Bureau and Jinan Daily Newspaper Group and co- organised by Jinan Mingfucheng Cultural Tourism Investment Holding CO., LTD and Beijing Rose Studio Culture CO.,LTD. This is the first couture fashion week hosted by the ACF in China with six couturiers all of whom are world-class design masters gathered in Jinan. With a focus on building a platform for global fashion design innovators, the event celebrates the borderless nature of creativity and seeks to promote the revival and flourishing of traditional culture and artisan skills in the contemporary era. The textile and clothing industry is one of the five major pillar industries of Shandong province. As China's fashion industry enters a new period of great development, the upgrading and transformation of Shandong's textile and clothing industry is vital. The Jinan Municipal Government and the Asian Couture Federation (ACF) are making great efforts to cooperate in order to promote the local textile and clothing industry in line with the a strong international design ethos and hopes this will accelerate the process of industrial upgrading from manufacturing to brand design, to create an open and dynamic position for Jinan in the global fashion market.

In August 2019, the State Council officially approved the China (Shandong) pilot free trade zone (hereinafter referred to as the Shandong free trade zone) as one of the sixth pilot free trade zones to expand the opening of its economy among China-Japan-Republic of Korea. The free trade agreement between these three countries would be promoted at the inaugural Jinan in Style International Fashion Week focusing on the fashion industry of China, Japan and South Korea. Six internationally renowned designers have been invited, including Ms. Guo Pei, who is currently the only Chinese member and the first Asian member of La Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture in Paris. She is joined by renowned wedding dresss couturier from Japan - Yumi Katsura, acclaimed menswear designer from South Korea SONGZIO, and fellow South Korean and extraordinary talent Lie Sang Bong. Finishing the line up is the exceptional creativity of Sebastian Gunawan from Indonesia the prodigious talent of Paolo Sebastian from Australia.

Jinan in Style International Fashion Week is the first major international fashion event held in Jinan. Programs during the week will include Jinan in Style International Fashion Week opening ceremony, ACF Awards Gala, Forum with Masters and six top couture fashion shows. The three-day event will present the most authoritative and influential creative and knowledge exchanges in the fashion industry and a sensory feast integrating fashion and culture.

Jinan in Style International Fashion Week integrates high-quality international resources, building a bridge between Jinan enterprises with Japanese and South Korean associations and enterprises. It offers future opportunities to Jinan which giving the city unique regional advantages and elevating its economic development. Integrating Jinan Old Town with a new shopping experience, enhancing the nightlife economy with industrial transformation that leading Jinan to a new phase of cultural development. Dr. Frank Cintamani, Founding President, AsianCouture Federation, said, "The Asian Couture Federation was established to represent and promote the very best couture talent in Asia and on the international stage. Without doubt, China has one of the most important cultural and artistic legacies in the world, and continues to wield an important influence and impact on numerous global industries and fashion in particular. As such, we fully support the cooperation of this international fashion week, and I am delighted that the Jinan in Style International Fashion Week in Shandong Province will play a key role in showcasing the most exceptional couture talent from across Asia Pacific, but also serve as a valuable reminder of China's own unique creative heritage."