Multiple China: cosmopolitanism and identities in Chinese fashion

Much has been written about the transformation of manufacturing to consuming China, with regard to fashion. However little has been studied for the process of making fashion in China which often involves a web of entanglement from manufacturing to branding. Foreign investment and China increased contact with the world now underline the production of Chinese fashion. While the desire for luxury encourages the induction of cosmopolitanism in global fashion brands, the (re-)creation of such cosmopolitanism is further exalted by Chinese fashion producers, be it manufacturers or Chinese designers. This paper considers these dynamics through case studies - Chinese designer fashion and Chinese-Italian ‘co-produced’ fashion – of the ‘making of fashion’ in China.