Event Roundup / IT Shenzhen Interview

Old Fibres and New Intelligence Compete for the Soul of Textile Manufacturing

Sustainability credentials and AI capabilities are increasingly shaping how textile buyers evaluate suppliers, yet the gap between exhibition-floor claims and commercial application remains significant. Intertextile Shenzhen 2026 drew over 20,000 visits from 74 countries and regions. Wilmet Shea, General Manager of Messe Frankfurt (HK) Ltd, assesses which innovations translated into tangible business outcomes and where the industry's direction is shifting.

Subir Ghosh

21 July 2026

6 minutes

Long Story, Cut Short

Domestic Chinese exhibitors led AI adoption at the fair, though traditional textile segments showed limited interest beyond simple workflows.
Buyer demand is increasingly favouring suppliers that can balance cost efficiency with verifiable sustainability credentials and longer product life cycles.
Natural and regenerated fibres including hemp, kapok, and plant-based alternatives are gaining traction as functional replacements for synthetics.

The textile industry's pivot toward digital tools and sustainable materials represents not a single transition but a layered negotiation between commercial reality and environmental imperative

SHIFTING GROUND The textile industry's pivot toward digital tools and sustainable materials represents not a single transition but a layered negotiation between commercial reality and environmental imperative Messe Frankfurt (HK)

Intertextile Shenzhen Apparel Fabrics | 2026

texfash: Intertextile Shenzhen positioned itself as a meeting point between textile manufacturing and AI-driven innovation. During the three days of the fair, where did that proposition hold up on the exhibition floor, and where did it prove harder to substantiate?

Wilmet Shea (WS): From our point of view as exhibition organisers, innovation is taking place in numerous ways across the textile industry – from advancements in derived functional materials and properties, to more sustainable and circular fibre use in fabrics, to AI-led developments across the value chain. This scope was reflected in the fair’s positioning through its overlying ‘textile innovation’ theme. Besides the new concepts we launched as part of our fringe programme, most notably the Future Horizons Forum and Innovation Studio, several exhibitors showed innovation in abundance.

Zooming in on AI, the domestic exhibitors were relatively strong in this regard, with Style3D a particular highlight – utilising AI fabric inspection systems and creating a full AI fashion workflow, from AI-generated design and fabric digitisation to 3D simulation and virtual marketing. While several Chinese companies are among the global leaders for AI implementation, we are finding that some more traditional textile segments have not yet found the need to implement AI beyond simple workflows.

The Innovation Studio was introduced as a major new feature. Which exhibits, demonstrations or collaborations attracted sustained attention rather than brief curiosity?

WS: Our four collaborators – the Asia International Hemp Federation (AIHF); the School of Fashion and Textiles at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU); the Technological and Higher Education Institute of Hong Kong (THEi); and Wuyi University – all reported gaining valuable connections and meaningful interactions through their individually curated areas within the Innovation Studio.

This was not a surprise to us, as they all spotlighted relevant innovation for buyers to engage with, from hemp’s role as a sustainable luxury textile and high-performance industrial material; to an emerging designer-focused networking platform; to technology-focused, sustainable fashion lines; and the precise transformation of raw materials into select fabrics. Our Innovation Studio collaborators also played vital roles at the Future Horizons Forum and various seminars, which purportedly helped generate valuable visitor traffic to their displays.

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At the Future Horizons Forum and at exhibitors’ booths, sustainability remained a prominent theme, and several participants were highlighting AI-enabled design, forecasting, and product development. Which sustainability claims were most closely engaged with and scrutinised? And which AI projects were commercially applicable vs concepts or pilot stage projects?

WS: Sustainability has become an important element for brands and suppliers targeting long-term feasibility in the market. While AI is a much more recent development, its application potential in the textile industry is vast, and we are starting to see some exhibitors shifting the focus to AI or making it a fundamental part of their operations and offering.

Regarding sustainability, our exhibitors know that this is often the starting point of discussions for many buyers. This is showcased in their increasing integration of eco-friendly materials such as waste-derived cellulose, natural fibres, or recycled man-made fibres, and by prominently displaying sustainability certifications. For example, visitors at this edition responded positively to functional and recycled textiles from Henglun Textile (Vietnam) and Toyoshima (Japan), fashionable wool from Jules Tournier (France), and sustainable cotton from Shibaya (Japan).

Through our debut Future Horizons Forum, which was very well received by speakers and audience members alike, industry experts and academics delved into important, progress-led topics. These included presentations and panel discussions on The Next Wave of Textile Innovation; Shaping a Sustainable Textile Future; and Unlocking the Applications of AI in the Fashion and Textile Industry. During the AI session, key players from LIVVIUM, Sunday Square and Shift Fashion Group unpacked how they’re already using AI to significantly streamline their businesses – from design assistance, trend analysis, and customer support, to complete sample and inventory database management.

International participation came from 11 countries and regions. Were overseas exhibitors pursuing the Chinese market, or were they using Shenzhen primarily as a platform to reach wider Asian buyers?

WS: The fair drew over 20,000 visits from 74 countries and regions, which was a notable increase in internationality compared to the previous edition. With its new positioning, the fair reinforced its role as an important avenue for international textile business in South China. Notably in attendance were 65 buyers from four overseas buyer delegations – three of which were from Southeast Asia, including the Malaysian Knitting Manufacturers Association and Thailand Textile Institute, who engaged in exhibitor meetings as part of the fair’s business matching programme. This edition also hosted VIP buyers from across Asia, Europe and North America, including Adidas, American Eagle, Lululemon, and SIDEFAME, as well as domestic VIP buyers such as Annakiki, CHLOSIO, and Ellassay.

Many international suppliers do treat Intertextile Shenzhen as an important platform to connect with existing partners and expand customer bases in the Greater Bay Area (GBA). Several exhibitors – particularly those in the Japan Zone – mentioned that they tailor their offerings specifically for this market, as regional buyers’ needs can be quite different compared to those who visit Intertextile Apparel in Shanghai. Overall, our overseas exhibitors were very satisfied with the visitor flow and preliminary business results achieved at Intertextile Shenzhen 2026, and look forward to carrying that momentum forward to our Autumn Edition this August.

Wilmet Shea

General Manager

Messe Frankfurt (HK)

Sustainability has become an important element for brands and suppliers targeting long-term feasibility in the market. While AI is a much more recent development, its application potential in the textile industry is vast, and we are starting to see some exhibitors shifting the focus to AI or making it a fundamental part of their operations and offering.

Innovation and AI

Style3D demonstrated a full AI fashion workflow from design generation and fabric digitisation through to virtual marketing
Several domestic Chinese exhibitors are among global leaders in textile AI implementation across manufacturing and design
Traditional textile segments have not yet found compelling reasons to adopt AI beyond simple workflow automation
The Future Horizons Forum featured presentations on textile innovation, sustainable futures, and AI applications in fashion
LIVVIUM, Sunday Square, and Shift Fashion Group detailed commercial AI applications spanning trend analysis and inventory management

Sustainability and Sourcing

Exhibitors increasingly display sustainability certifications alongside eco-friendly materials including waste-derived cellulose and recycled man-made fibres
Medium to high-end brands are prioritising longer product life cycles over cost-driven fast fashion purchasing models
Hemp is being positioned as both a sustainable luxury textile and a high-performance industrial material for composites
A notable talking point at the fair was kapok fibres, though whether demand is regional or global remains unclear
Performance apparel brands are increasingly turning to cotton, cellulose, and plant-based alternatives as functional replacements for synthetics

Shenzhen’s technology credentials featured heavily in pre-show messaging, and many exhibitors promoted innovation, but textile and apparel supply chains remain heavily influenced by cost pressures. During buyer-seller discussions, where did innovation command a premium and where was price still decisive?

WS: Of course, the entire global market is experiencing difficulties – consumers are being squeezed, and that is being felt across the textile supply chain. This has helped fuel the rise of fast fashion, and while cost will always be a critical factor during buyer-seller discussions, innovation and quality are key considerations as well. This is particularly true for medium- to high-end brands that are leaning into creating eco-conscious apparel with longer life cycles, resulting in some textile suppliers focusing on reducing fibre loss and colour degradation, and improving long-term functionality.

Until innovative, sustainable solutions can scale more effectively, they will always command a premium, yet many industry players are looking to textile heritage for inspiration. One case in point from the fair is AIHF, who maintain that innovation is necessary to uplift and upscale hemp, one of humanity’s oldest textile fibres. The material’s applications are wide, going beyond fashion to industrial uses such as auto composites and bioplastics. AIHF reported that Intertextile Shenzhen 2026 helped them connect with numerous industry stakeholders, and we look forward to hosting them at Cinte Techtextil China in September to further explore hemp’s prospects.

Trade fairs often reveal shifts before they appear in official industry data. Leaving Shenzhen this year, what changed your own assessment of where the textile industry is heading over the next two years?

WS: It is clear the global market may take some time to recover, and exhibitors are having to adapt to requests for smaller MOQs and general purchasing restraint. We may see that the suppliers that can demonstrate the most flexibility or cost-effectiveness can use these circumstances to consolidate their positions in the market. On the other hand, there is a genuine movement towards long-term quality, product differentiation, and more responsible sourcing practices – such as the performance apparel sector increasingly turning to cotton, cellulose, plant-based fibres, regenerated textile fibres, and wool as functional alternatives.

Manufacturers that can find the right blend between cost, sustainability and sustained functionality will have a definite advantage going forward. One interesting point mentioned by our regular exhibitor GOTS, who also hosted a certification standards seminar, was that kapok fibres were a particularly hot topic at Intertextile Shenzhen 2026. It remains to be seen if this is a more regional development tied to the GBA, or if this trend will further develop at our apparel textile fairs in Shanghai and beyond.

The tension between innovation premiums and price-driven procurement defines an industry where sustainable solutions have yet to achieve the scale that would make them broadly competitive. Messe Frankfurt (HK)

Subir Ghosh

SUBIR GHOSH is a Kolkata-based independent journalist-writer-researcher who writes about environment, corruption, crony capitalism, conflict, wildlife, and cinema. He is the author of two books, and has co-authored two more with others. He writes, edits, reports and designs. He is also a professionally trained and qualified photographer.

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