Scotland's leading textiles brands and most promising new designers are heading to China to promote Scottish fashion.
There will be a Scottish Pavilion with 16 textile companies and designers at the 21st China International Clothing and Accessories Fair, in Beijing, from March 26 to 29. It's the first time Scotland will be represented.
Brands include established textile companies such as Johnstons of Elgin and Hawick Cashmere, as well as up-and-coming designers such as Rebecca Torres, Iona Crawford and Hilary Grant. Barrie Knitwear, the Borders-based firm which was bought by Chanel last year, will also be at the exhibition.
The Scottish Pavilion is being co-ordinated by Scottish Development International, Scottish Enterprise's international arm. It is hoped Scotland's textile sector will be able to capture a share of China's luxury goods market, worth £11.2 billion, and the value of Scottish exports to China will grow by 50% over the next two years.
Cathy Black, head of Scottish Enterprise's textiles team, said: "We're hoping to generate at least £1 million of additional sales for the participating companies and given the size of the market, we think this could be the start of something very exciting."
Textiles Scotland will showcase Scotland's fashion industry to more than 110,000 visitors from 20 countries. Brand representatives and designers will also take part in seminars, briefings and tours of Beijing's department stores in order to establish relationships with retailers.
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