Designer Zhou Li holds a cotton bouquet after her autumn/winter 2021 collection show, during China Fashion Week in Beijing, China March 30, 2021. REUTERS/Tingshu Wang
BY CATE CADELL AND Nanlin Fang
BEIJING (Reuters) – Designer Zhou Li took to the stage amid applause following her runway show at China Fashion Week with a prop that has political overtones: a bouquet of cotton plants.
“As far as I’m concerned, I think Xinjiang cotton is my sweetheart, my love, which is to say I’m very grateful it has brought me such happiness,” Zhou, 56, told Reuters after her show on Tuesday in Beijing.
Zhou, chief designer and founder of Chinese fashion brand Sun-Bird, is a patriotic supporter of a boycott targeting several major western apparel brands in China that have expressed concern over alleged rights abuses in Xinjiang province.
She said her garments on show on Tuesday, which featured slick minimalist designs with ruffles and ancient Chinese characters, used Xinjiang cotton exclusively.
“For our Chinese designs, I’m certainly right to support the Xinjiang people,” she said.
H&M, Burberry, Adidas and Nike are among those hit by consumer boycotts in China after their comments on alleged human rights abuses in Xinjiang resurfaced on Chinese social media last week.
The backlash has put the brands in an awkward position given the importance of the market in China, where news and social media are tightly controlled by the Communist Party-controlled government and patriotic campaigns targeting foreign brands are common.
“First of all, as everyone knows, these are false statements (from the brands)”, 19-year old fashion model Zhao Yinuo said outside the event. “But of course I can’t comment too much on this because it involves political issues.”
