Twin Giants of Fast Fashion!

Could a fast-fashion company from China knock the famed Zara to the ground?

Not only had Dr. Xu Qingzhou never heard of it, but Cao Feiyu beside him also looked rather intrigued.

Though the old saying went that after three days apart, one should see a person in a new light, Gao Yuan's earth-shattering transformation was still hard for Cao Feiyu to adapt to. Was this really the old friend he remembered? How did he know so much?

Gao Yuan chuckled. "If you've been following a ranking called the BrandZ China Top 50 Brands Going Global, you'll find a company we rarely hear about called Shein, ranked fourteenth on that list."

"You should know that DJI Group, the Shenzhen company that makes drones, ranked thirteenth, while China Eastern Airlines Group ranked fifteenth. What gave Shein the right to rank even higher than China Eastern Airlines Group?"

The moment this question was raised, everyone was stunned. Ranked after DJI Group but ahead of China Eastern Airlines Group, it had to be an incredibly formidable company. Yet no one had ever heard of this mysterious company called Shein. Something was seriously off.

Gao Yuan paused before continuing. "Besides Shein, there's another mysterious company on that list called Zaful. Zaful ranks twenty-third."

"Don't think twenty-third is a low ranking. China Southern Airlines ranks twenty-fifth, PetroChina twenty-sixth, VIVO twenty-seventh, Honor twenty-eighth, Gree twenty-ninth, and ZTE Group, one of the two telecom giants, thirtieth."

That only made the atmosphere stranger. These two unfamiliar companies were ranked absurdly high, weren't they?

The Top 50 Brands Going Global naturally referred to brands with immense influence in international markets outside China.

How could two companies that were practically unknown at home dominate the international market and rank higher than Gree and ZTE Group!?

Gao Yuan opened a bottle of mineral water and took a small sip. "To tell you the truth, Shein and Zaful are both in fast fashion. They sell clothes."

"Since neither company sells its products domestically, Chinese consumers have never even heard of them."

"But the world is just that strange. Just because you haven't heard of them doesn't mean they don't exist. In fact, not only do they exist, their methods are extremely ruthless and their offensive is utterly ferocious!"

"Dr. Xu, while you're worrying that domestic apparel companies can't beat foreign ones, Shein and Zaful are joining forces in North America and Europe to slaughter the world's most powerful fast-fashion giants!"

"In 2019 alone, Spanish giant Zara closed more than a thousand stores. Swedish giant H.M saw its profit margin plunge from over ten percent straight into the negatives. North American giant Forever21 went bankrupt, while another giant, GAP, was still struggling to hold on—but it likely wasn't far from bankruptcy either."

"So you need to look farther ahead. In China, giants like Uniqlo and Nike may indeed have everything under their control, but beyond China, the war has never stopped. Countless Chinese companies are still heading overseas one after another, charging forward without hesitation!"

"We all know that Huawei is suffering a fatal blockade from North America. Its phone business could very well never recover, and the situation is truly dire. We all feel terribly sorry about it."

"But did you know that while Huawei's sales in Europe plunged by seventeen percent, Xiaomi's European sales skyrocketed by sixty-five percent?"

"Did those white pigs think that if they squeezed Huawei out of the market, their own companies would get to profit?"

"What a joke! The company that replaced Huawei as Europe's third-largest smartphone supplier wasn't a North American company, nor was it a European company. It was Xiaomi! From now on, Xiaomi is one of Europe's top three smartphone suppliers!"

"At the same time, the European sales of China's other two major phone giants, VIVO and OPPO, also surged by more than fifty percent! Chinese phone makers are still charging ahead with unstoppable momentum!"

"Samsung had been thrilled, thinking it could reap the benefits after Huawei was brutally blocked. But what happened? The three Chinese companies led by Xiaomi not only swallowed up Huawei's abandoned market share, they also wiped out thirty-one percent of Samsung's sales!"

"In other words, even without Huawei, Samsung will still die! The only difference is that someone else will be carrying out the execution."

It had to be said that although Gao Yuan was young, he was the sort of person brimming with passion, with a magnetic voice that could inspire others.

As a veteran tech enthusiast, Gao Yuan had spent years tirelessly gathering all kinds of obscure knowledge on the Internet. Over time, he had developed a unique worldview and set of values.

Moreover, his deep understanding of the global market and global competition was not much inferior to that of those so-called experts.

After hearing Gao Yuan's remarks, Dr. Xu Qingzhou's heart raced, and he was immensely excited.

Though the clash between Eastern and Western civilizations was brutal, China was no pushover. In corners ordinary people never paid attention to, one peak showdown after another was constantly unfolding.

"So does that mean the textile industry might still be saved?" Dr. Xu Qingzhou asked anxiously. Though textiles were known as a sunset industry, it was still his original profession.

"Be confident. Drop the 'might.'" Gao Yuan smiled faintly. "In 2019, Vietnam officially replaced Bangladesh as the world's second-largest textile exporter. That sounds frightening, like a serious threat."

"But do you know what? Vietnam's second-place ranking doesn't carry much weight. It's only thirty billion US Dollars. In fact, even if you added up everyone from second place through tenth, they still wouldn't compare to China, because our annual textile exports exceed two hundred billion US Dollars."

"A starving camel is still bigger than a horse. There's clearly an international trend targeting us, but as long as we remain humble and cautious, do not underestimate the enemy because they seem weak, while strengthening upstream technological research and downstream brand development, there won't be any problem at all."

Director Qin, the oldest among them, had gone out to make a phone call. Meanwhile, Gao Yuan and the other young people were having a wonderful conversation. In particular, Dr. Xu Qingzhou and Gao Yuan unexpectedly developed a feeling of mutual appreciation.

Perhaps it was because they shared the same values, or perhaps because Dr. Xu Qingzhou admired Gao Yuan's breadth of knowledge. In any case, the two exchanged WeChat accounts and phone numbers, then agreed to have a proper drink together someday, sing over wine, and chat to their hearts' content.

What was going on...?

Qin Yongbo returned after finishing his call outside and found that Gao Yuan and Dr. Xu Qingzhou were practically slinging their arms around each other's shoulders, as if they had known each other for ages.

"Young Boss Gao, you mentioned bank loans earlier. I happen to know someone. If you need help, you can ask him." Director Qin said somewhat abruptly. "After all, not every bank can properly assess the value of X Fiber."

"Come on, let's add each other on WeChat. I'll send you his contact card."

Sorry, but I can't guarantee a fixed update schedule. First, because I have no chapters saved up, and second, because my health has not fully recovered yet.

In any case, I hope I can get better as soon as possible.

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