BEIJING - Beijing is planning to build China's first design exchange to offer a platform for design trading and boost the country's burgeoning creativity industry.
"China enjoys a tremendous market for both manufacturing and consumption, and sees a growing demand for design industry and an increasing supply in this regard," Song Weizu, vice secretary-general of the China Industrial Design Association, said Sunday.
In Beijing alone, there are about 1,000 governmental design businesses and 20,000 privately-run design companies, said Song, who is also secretary-general of the Beijing Industrial Design Promotion Association.
"But there is no public platform in China for design suppliers and those in need to find each other, and the two parties have to contact each other in a point-to-point way," he said.
"That not only lowers market efficiency but also hampers industry expansion," he said.
Song said the China design exchange will open this year if "everything goes smoothly."
"Some international design companies in Britain, Republic of Korea, Italy and others have voiced interest in the design exchange," he said.
But Song would not give further details about the exchange.
