1、 英文文献资料 （二） How do Industry Clusters Success: A Case Study in Chinas Textiles and Apparel Industries Zhiming Zhang, Chester , & Ning Cao (Institute of Textiles and Clothing,The Hong Kong Polytechnic University) 3. Industry Clusters of Textiles and Apparel in China Industrial clustering is a new phen
2、omenon in China. Only a few research started to pay attention to it in the 1990s. Wang (2001) described the development of some clusters in the coastal regions of China, and discussed their characteristics, including their localized network. He particularly examined the impact of accidental factor o
3、n the formation of clusters, and pointed out that the strength of the impact depended on the congruence of the sector choice, brought about by the accidental factor, with the natural advantages of the region and the rightness of the policy decision of the local government. Thus, the importance of go
4、vernment was emphasized. The first tier of the clusters existed in the late 1970s and early 1980s, when China was first open to the outside world. Taking the advantages of proximity and low labor cost, many Hong Kong textile and apparel companies invested in Pearl River delta, and there appeared a f
5、ew clusters of textile and apparel firms. These clusters grew fast, as new investments also came from Taiwan and other places, and many local entrepreneurs emerged as well. These clusters include Shenzhen (though later much diluted as it is now one of the largest cities in China), Dongguan (similar
6、to Shenzhen but to a less degree), Humen, Shaxi, and others. Closely following this, the economy in Yangtze River delta developed fast and became very dynamic. Many enterprises of collective ownership and of private ownership established and grew very fast. Many of them were textile and apparel firm
7、s. It was typical that these firms clustered together. Several reasons account for their fast growth: First, the entry barrier to the textile and apparel industry was very low in terms of capital and technology. For example, at the beginning, only one manually operated device to knit socks or just a
8、 few sewing machines were needed. At the same time, there was almost endless supply of cheap labor, who were farmers eager to leave the land. As the enterprises expanded, some shrewd entrepreneurs lured technicians and skilled labors who were retired from state-owned enterprises to work for them. Th
9、ese firms were most located in towns. The government granted very flexible policies for the growth and operation of these firms. They were much less restricted by the clumsy rules and regulations than the state-owned enterprises, for example, they did not have to offer the so called iron-bowl to the
10、ir employees, and they had no burden of payments to retired employees. On the other hand, these firms were very sensitive and responsive to market changes. Thus, they were very competitive. Second, at that time China was just about to come out of the planned economy when there was insufficient suppl
11、y of almost everything. Thus, there was never a lack of strong demand for such consumer goods as textiles and apparel. Along with this, little marketing and marketing skills were needed to sell the products. Third, as these firms were started by farmer-entrepreneurs in towns and even villages, they
12、set examples and became models to others. Many times the latter just followed the footprints of the pioneers, starting with the same methods, making the same products, and selling in the same market. As villagers often belong to the same family, they did not view each other as competitors, and helpe
13、d each other in terms of capital, technique, and even customers through the strong sense of kinship. These firms were the seeds of the industrial clusters of textiles and apparel. Now most of the clusters still distributed in the two areas: Pearl River delta and Yangtze River delta. The former is Gu
14、angdong province, and the latter Zhejiang province and southern part of Jiangsu province. These happen to be the most advanced regions in China, in coastal area, with the best infrastructure in information, communication, and transportation. As a matter of fact, most of the clusters are located eith
15、er beside a highway or very close to a port. They are also very close to major cities, particularly Hong Kong, Guangzhou, and Shanghai. At present the structural development of the textile and apparel industry of China is characterized in two directions: one is a group of large companies based in la
16、rge cities with capacity in marketing and product development, often operating supply chain regionally even globally； the other is a number of clusters of many small and medium sized firms based in small cities and towns, with featured products and vigorous growth (CNTIC, 2003). Thus, industrial clu
17、stering has become one of the two wings of the development of the textile and apparel industry in China. This demonstrates the importance of the clusters. 4. Case Observation We conducted an industry survey in one industrial cluster, which is a town, called Shengze, located in Wujiang county of Jian
18、gsu province in eastern China. While Shengze had an early history of silk production, it was primarily of agriculture before the late 1970s when China started economic reforms. At that time, the size of the town was about 4 square kilometers with a population of 30,000. Since then, the town has seen
19、 enormous growth and become one of the 19 towns with special features designated by CNTIC, and one of the most important textile clusters in China. The focus of Shengze is fabric manufacturing, primarily light weighted fabrics for lining of apparel. Now the size of the town has expanded to 25 square
20、 kilo meters with a population of nearly 200,000, most of them migrants from other parts of the country. There are about 1,100 factories, operating about 50,000 looms, all of which are of water-jet or air-jet. It is said to be one of the largest concentration of such looms. The total yearly output i
21、s about RMB20 billion (US$2.5 billion). There are about 4,000 selling and buying offices located in the town. The business district of the town is full of such offices, which would impress any visitors to the town. And there is no sign of stopping of the fast growth. This is a qualitative and explor
22、atory study, and in-depth interviews with town officials and entrepreneurs were used to collect information about the industrial cluster. Altogether 3 town officials (Vice Party Secretary of the town, Director of The Town Government Office, and Director of The Town Development Office) and 8 entrepre
23、neurs were interviewed by structured means. During the interviews, in addition to the current situation of the cluster, the history of development was also investigated. Emphases were paid to the following questions: how is the cluster formed； to what degree does township government play a role, and
24、 to what degree do market forces promote the clustering； what is the advantages of clustering to the locality and to the enterprises； what are the interactive relationship among the enterprises within the cluster； what is the relationship between the cluster and the external market system； how does
25、the cluster attract the servicing industries； and how does the clustering help the creation of new enterprises and new jobs. These questions have profound policy and marketing implications. Some of the findings to these questions are presented in this paper, with a focus on the origin and growth of
26、the cluster. 4.1. Historical factors In accordance with the literature (Krugman, 1986), the development of Shengze into a light-fabric cluster was accidental, but on he other hand quite natural with a historical reason. Located in southern China with warm climate, fertile land and abundant water fro
27、m nearby rivers and lakes, Shengze had been one of the silk centers in China for hundreds of years. Historically, residents of Shengze were skillful in silk production, and many workshops and silk-related businesses were located in Shengze. Merchants from all over the country would flock to Shengze
28、for silk. Thus, it could be regarded as a silk cluster even then. However, as planned economy was established and no private business was allowed to exist, the silk center was reduced to nothing and Shengze was no more than an ordinary agricultural town in China. This was for about 3 decades until t
29、he late 1970s. By then, economic reforms began, and town residents were allowed to start their own businesses. For a few of them, the natural choice was to enter the silk business, since this was something they were relatively familiar with and the local conditions were suitable for. This was the or
30、igin of the cluster. 4.2. The Role of the Local Authority While the origin seemed to be natural and out of the plan of the local government, the government did play an important role in helping the cluster grow. Both government officials and entrepreneurs emphasized the importance of two measures ta
31、ken by the local authority. The first one was the establishment of a market in its physical form. The Shengze government was sensitive to realize that the lack of a market had become the constraint on the development of the economic activities and a physical market was in demand. The government then
32、 financed and developed “The Oriental Silk Market”, which was like a mart and leased to various trading firms. This provided a platform, and tremendously stimulated the growth of businesses both in demand and supply. Later when this was no longer sufficient to hold all of the buying and selling offi
33、ces, a new district was developed, which eventually expanded into an area which holds thousands of selling and buying offices. The other was the establishment of an industrial park, which is beside the provincial highway. The government provided the infrastructure in terms of road, water, electricit
34、y, and other basic conditions. This has created a good environment for manufacturing. While at the beginning, Shengze was only focused on silk production, very soon the enterprises broke the limits. As there was some similarity in technology between silk fabric and lightweight fabric, many of the fi
35、rms expanded into the production of man-made fiber fabrics. Now even though Shengze is still known as a silk center, most of its looms are engaged in weaving of lightweight fabrics. 4.3. The Role of Individual Entrepreneurs During our interviews, we were very impressed with those entrepreneurs of Sh
36、engze. Many of them are local residents and previously were farmers. They demonstrated enormous spirit of risk taking, creativity, and willingness to learn from the market. One young entrepreneur started as a security guard, borrowed a little money to enter the business, then set up a small factory
37、of his own. Now this has been expanded into a company, and just the weaving branch of it has capacity of 220 water-jet looms and 120 air-jet looms. He also exhibited outstanding leadership in organizing the local entrepreneurs to negotiate with Toyota of Japan. They collectively made the largest order ever in the world, 3,600 air-jet looms. In the process of his business expansion, he has helped numerous others to start their own business by loaning capital, sharing technology and market. These
