Jinjiang: A good sport

On Monday, April 1, the sportswear and shoe producing city of Jinjiang invited the media to a Beijing press conference promoting the 15th edition of its successful International Footwear Exhibition, which will run from April 18 to April 21 this year.

On April 1, 2013, the city of Jinjiang hosted a Beijing press conference in promotion of the 15th Jinjiang International Footwear Exhibition, which will take place in the city from April 18 to April 21 this year.

Located on China's southeastern coast, in Fujian Province, Jinjiang City's development mode (aka the "Jinjiang Pattern") is one of the nation's four modes for rural economic growth. The city ranks number one in Fujian Province's top ten districts and has been included in the top one hundred Chinese counties and cities, in terms of national overall strength, for four straight sessions.

On an international level, Jinjiang has forged enduring ties of cooperation with over 40 countries across the globe, with the district's products entering the European, American, South African, and so on, markets.

Once every year, Jinjiang is vibrant with commercial activity when it hosts its annual International Footwear Exhibition, luring manufacturers from all over the world map to Jinjiang and presenting (promoting) Jinjiang to the world. The city, nicknamed China's "Shoe Capital," reportedly produces one billion pairs of shoes on an annual basis, with a wide assortment of styles. And each year, this major exhibition witnesses the coming together of both Chinese and foreign traders in the field.

The city is renowned across China for being a center of private enterprises in the shoe and sportswear industry and is home to a number of primary domestic brands, such as Anta, Xstep and 361. Nevertheless, Jinjiang is now looking at the bigger (global) picture by attracting more international names to the area in order to further boost its manufacturing ability.

In August of 2012, Jinjiang Mayor Liu Wenru, who was also presiding over Monday's press conference, stated in an interview with Chinadaily.com.cn, "There are more than 126 nationally certified brands in Jinjiang, the most in any county-level city. Though most of these brands are well-known names in China, they are hardly known outside the country […] Jinjiang will offer not only incentives, but also rewards for enterprises that acquire well-known global brands."

In order to promote these brands on a global level, the city now seeks and encourages mergers and acquisitions as well as other moves towards expansion by domestic enterprises. The annual Footwear Exhibition undoubtedly plays a vital part in this aspect.

Liu, who was kind enough to sit down for a brief one-on-one with 91kudian.com after the overall media presentation, particularly focused on and showed a passion for the need for innovation as well as that for social equality -- if Jinjiang aims to attain that global "Nike/Adidas" level of competition and at the same time maintain a sense of social responsibility, that is.

On April 1, 2013, the city of Jinjiang hosted a Beijing press conference in promotion of the 15th Jinjiang International Footwear Exhibition, which will take place in the city from April 18 to April 21 this year.

On the topic of "globalizing" Jinjiang, Liu explained, "In order to strengthen our brands and allow for them to compete on an international level, we need perseverance and innovation. Nonetheless, we must bear in mind that Europe and the U.S. have been in the [shoe and clothing] manufacturing business for much longer than China. We need time."

In regards to advocating and maintaining a sense of social responsibility, Liu showed a profound, yet unfortunately not yet often found in China, interest in creating a social balance and narrowing the gap between rich and poor; a gap which over the past decade has appeared across the nation due to its unprecedented and rapid economic development which pushed some forward yet left others to lag further and further behind (a phenomenon often spotted in developing nations).

"We have a responsibility towards our fellow Jinjiang citizens. Social equality is a necessary factor in creating a prosperous society which can in turn benefit the national (economic) strength and allow for us all to compete on an international level. Health care, insurance, fair pay, good working conditions; all these we now provide to our citizens out of a feeling and need for social responsibility. Unfortunately however, this remains too often not the case in China. We need to change that if we want to continue onto the next level."

True.

《Jinjiang: A good sport》永久阅读地址: http://91kudian.com/yingyu/16679/