AFTER leaders of the 21 economies of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) group took a photo together in sleek, high-collared Chinese tunics Monday in Beijing, the Chinese fashion designers behind the garb began to lure public attention.

    Luo Zheng, chairwoman and chief creative designer of Shenzhen-based fashion brand OMNIALUO, designed the outfits for female leaders. “What leaders wear is a symbol of the times. When they innovatively combine ethnic elements, clothes can not only lead to a new wave of fashion, but also display China’s increasing soft power,” said Luo.

    Since February, Luo led 11 designers to work on the project and chose four elements of nature to keep in mind while designing: clouds, peonies, magnolias and green lotuses. The concept behind the costumes is the Chinese word 和 — which can mean harmony, friendliness, peace and integrity between mankind and nature, said Luo.

    After several revisions, the designs by Luo’s team were chosen for the outfits for APEC’s female leaders. “Their appearance at the APEC meeting is the result of our hard work. The honor belongs to the whole team,” said Luo.

    Luo said that it’s a smart dress code to wear an official outfit with traditional ethnic elements and that it can also improve China’s recognition on the global stage. “The key point is that we should have cultural confidence,” said Luo.

    Another local fashion designer, Zhao Huizhou, who is chief designer of Shenzhen-based Eachway Fashion Group, won the opportunity to design for the female spouses of APEC participants.

    “Through innovating the design and textile use, we intended to design costumes that look both historic and modern, national and international, and fit into the characters of the leaders while also meeting the tastes of ordinary citizens,” said Zhao.

    “Material was the top concern,” he said.

    After receiving the invitation to design, Zhao immediately contacted a Chinese textile research center and top Chinese textile manufacturers. “Without their contributions, we couldn’t have made it,” said Zhao.

    In addition to making never-before-used textiles, Zhao also researched information on first ladies’ styles and their cultural preferences and taboos.

    “Every first lady looks gorgeous in their outfit, but shines in a different way,” said Zhao.

    “Thanks to the growing influence of the Shenzhen fashion industry, I got an opportunity to compete to design the costumes and finally won,” said Zhao.

    It has become a custom that leaders wear the traditional costume of the APEC meeting’s host country. Leaders wore Tang suits during the 2001 APEC meeting in Shanghai. At the 2013 APEC meeting in Bali, Indonesia, leaders wore endek, a traditional textile from Bali.

    (Luo Songsong)