Thriving Capital Of Children’s Clothes

Major social and economic progress since reform and opening up was introduced in the late 1970s could not have been achieved without the efforts of ordinary people. Every person， family and organization who have actively participated in the historic drive to give full play to the nations potential has a stake in its success.

This weeks cover story follows the transformation of Zhili， a town in Huzhou City， east Chinas Zhejiang Province， from a poor village to Chinas manufacturing hub for childrens garment over the past four decades. Beijing Review reporters traveled to Zhili to interview local business people about the journeys they have taken toward a better life.

Zhili started to develop its traditional embroidery industry following the implementation of the reform and opening-up policy in 1978， but many local business people switched to the production of childrens clothes in the mid-1980s in search of bigger profits. Now， Zhili has formed a complete industrial chain of childrens wear incorporating design， manufacturing， sales， storage and logistics. It is upgrading the sector by cultivating famous brands and embracing e-commerce.

There are around 13，000 companies producing 1.3 billion pieces of childrens clothing every year， with over a half of Chinas childrens clothes manufactured there.

Zhilis success is not a single case but typifi es the growth pattern of coastal regions in east China， with their advanced private economies. The private economy and free market have been the engine of Chinas reform and opening up and have greatly contributed to its success.

Zhilis case is an illustration of how Chinas reform and opening up relies on the emancipation of peoples minds， the improvement of social management， the modernization of agriculture and urbanization.

Among the achievements made through reform and opening up， the improvement of peoples living standards is the one that stands above all others. According to offi cial statistics， the number of people in employment has increased by 9.61 million every year over the past four decades， per-capita disposable income increased by almost 23 times from 1978 to 2017， per-capita consumer expenditure increased 18 fold from 1978 to 2017 and the countrys life expectancy improved from 67.8 in 1981 to 76.7 last year.

Zhilis fi gures stand much higher than the national average. In 2017， the towns GDP reached 20.3 billion yuan （$3 billion）， and its development model can serve as an example for impoverished regions in other parts of the world.