A group of foreigners visit the Humen Bridge, one of the landmarks in Humen of Dongguan, South China's Guangdong Province. Humen attracts hosts of investors and business people from all over the world every year.

The preparatory work for the 10th China (Humen) International Fashion Fair, which, in terms of investment attraction and exhibitor invitation, started early this year, has come to an end, according to the organizing committee.

The fair, to be held in Humen of Dongguan, South China's Guangdong Province, is slated for between November 11-15 this year.

The main exhibition hall of the fair will cover an area of 18,400 square metres with 815 standard booths, 630 of them for clothing, 50 for dress materials and 135 for sewing machines. The number of branch showrooms increases to 32, up 6 from last year, extending to a total area of more than 300,000 square metres.

Local brands are expected to play a major role in the fair, accounting for 70 per cent of the nearly 6,000 would-be corporate exhibitors in total.

To improve the professional level and cultural content of the event, the organizing committee will continue to invite the locally famous New Silk Road Models Company to present 16 fashion shows during the fair.

In particular, a fashion show with Peking Opera characteristics will add new light to the opening ceremony of the fair, aiming to acquaint people with the cultural dimension of the local fashion industry.

Besides renowned local brands, the masterly designs by designers of the United States, Italy and France will also be in the limelight.

Another highlight of the event is the addition of a designer showcase, in the hope of serving as a platform for contact and communication between fashion corporations and designers, as well as attracting more talented designers to Humen.

On the agenda are also a large-scale "Happy China Tour" entertainment performance and the finals pool of the 2005 world top model contest.

In addition, the annual national meeting for the fashion industry will be held at the same time, in which the elite of China's fashion industry will gather in Humen to explore the way for the industry's development.

Meanwhile, officials from related authorities, high-profile economists and famous experts in the fashion circle will be invited to attend three China fashion fortune forums, and share their views on the relationship between China's fashion brands and sustainable development.

One of the forums will be sponsored by the Policy Research Centre and Development Research Centre of the State Council, China's cabinet, which will be the first time for such a high-level forum to be held in Humen.

The organizing committee has reinforced co-operation with various news media organizations to get a facelift for the fair.

According to Qin Yingfu, director of the news centre of the organizing committee, more than 300 news articles regarding the fashion industry in Humen have been released by influential media like the People's Daily, Xinhua News Agency, China Central Television (CCTV), China National Radio, China Textile News, Yangcheng Evening News and Guangzhou Daily from January to September this year.

During the upcoming 10th fashion fair, apart from CCTV, the fashion channels of over 20 provincial-level televisions nationwide and some 100 domestic print media, and foreign media like the French Fashion TV will also participate in the coverage of the grand event.

The annual fair, one of the most influential events in China's fashion industry to date, is jointly sponsored by the Dongguan municipal government, Guangdong Association for Garment and Garment Article Industry, Guangdong Association for Fashion Designers and the Humen township government.

The last session of the fair in 2004 witnessed 800,000 visitors during its six-day period, with turnover totalling 3.26 billion yuan (US$402.5 million).

Humen township of Dongguan, South China's Guangdong Province, is well known for its fashion industry, in particular women's fashion.

Editor: Yan