Dot-coms Take Aim at Fashion

Companies promoting e-business networks for the textile industry are showing up for the first time at this year's Shanghai International Fashion Expo.

Website operators aid software producers from Asia and the united States are exhibiting their latest technologies to help designers and garment makers increase sales and modernize their management.

Such high-tech involvement could give a much-needed boost to China's fashion industry, said the exposition's organizer.

"We hope more local companies will adopt e-commerce as a way to channel themselves into world markets," said Li Kerang, general secretary of the organizing committee. "The Internet could become an important toll to help them compete."

The expo, part of the 6th Shanghai International Fashion Festival, will run through tomorrow at the Shanghai Exhibition Center.

Among the e-commerce entrants was Hong Kong-based tradetextile.com, which specializes in business-to-business services for the textile industry.

"Many exhibitors are showing great interest in our technologies," said Lesley Wang, a company representative.

US-headquartered Meetchina.com, a business-to-business website offering internatioal online trading in a range of sectors, is telling expo visitors about its special channel for the textile industry.

"The fashion trade fair is a good marketing opportunity for us," said the firm's Dan Huaxing. Founded last July, Taiwan-based Shanghai Happysoft System Co. Ltd. says it can provide both an e-business platform and office management software for those in the fashion trades.

"Seeking new clients is of course our main purpose for being here," said Happysoft manager Thomas Chen. "But we also aim to help these companies improve their management so they can expand sales in the domestic and overseas markets"