As fashion’s warp and weft intertwine with the dialogue of civilizations, and as time marks its fifteenth chapter, The 15th Dalang Cup China Women's Fashion Design Contest is renewed and upgraded with the theme “Resonance # East.”
The 15th Dalang Cup China Women's Fashion Design Contest is sponsored by the China National Garment Association (CNGA) and the People’s Government of Longhua District, Shenzhen; organized by the Construction and Promotion Center for Major Regions of Shenzhen Longhua District,the Women’s Wear Specialized Committee of China National Garment Association, and the Dalang Sub-district Office of Longhua District, Shenzhen; and co-organized by China Textile & Apparel Press Co., Ltd.
Against the backdrop of the 2026 APEC Meeting in Shenzhen, the contest aligns with the spirit of the times, guided by the principles of “Openness, Innovation, and Cooperation.” With a new theme, an updated competition structure, and an expanded platform, it is poised to present an outstanding creative showcase to designers worldwide.
Piloting the Trend: Fifteen Years of Rooted in the East, Expanding the Boundaries of the Fashion Ecosystem
Founded in 2011 by Dalang Fashion Town in Longhua, Shenzhen, The 15th Dalang Cup China Women's Fashion Design Contest is the world’s first design competition to take “the East” as its central theme from its inception. Supported by a comprehensive network of resources and strong industry empowerment mechanisms, the contest has consistently remained at the forefront of the industry’s competitive landscape, setting trends and demonstrating its leading stature. Notably, the gold award prize of up to RMB 300,000 has set a record among comparable competitions, becoming a distinctive footnote to the contest's strength. For many designers, participating in the Dalang Cup is more than a competition; it is widely regarded as a pivotal step toward reaching the peak of their professional careers.
As a flagship IP of Dalang Fashion Town, The 15th Dalang Cup China Women's Fashion Design Contest has established itself as a “golden signboard” for emerging design talent. Its slogan, “Let the contest be more than a contest,” has resonated widely across the industry, vividly reflecting the Dalang Cup’s value in empowering designers, advancing the development of China’s garment industry, and supporting the growth of Dalang Fashion Town. To date, the Dalang Cup has nurtured numerous industry leaders, including recipients of China’s highest fashion design honor, the Golden Top Award, as well as winners of titles such as China’s Best Women’s Wear Designer and China’s Top Ten Designers. The contest is a "cradle" for outstanding design talents, supporting young designers as they grow, evolve, and expand their careers.
Dimension Upgrade: A Comprehensive Transformation to Build a Strategic Cultural Platform
With a comprehensive upgrade, The 15th Dalang Cup China Women's Fashion Design Contest will build a strategic cultural platform. The new theme, “Resonance # East,” centers on the concept of “resonance,” which reflects the wisdom of Eastern philosophy, emphasizing harmony, symbiosis, and balance rather than singularity or opposition. “Resonance” also implies expression, response, and voice. In an era marked by cultural collisions, environmental challenges, and ethical questions surrounding technology, “Resonance # East” offers a powerful Eastern response to the times: neither silence nor assimilation, but the pursuit of resonance through difference, and the realization of “harmony in diversity.”
As the wisdom of “Resonance # East” resonates with the open and dynamic spirit of APEC in Shenzhen, a cross-regional dialogue of civilizations comes into view. The philosophy of “harmony in diversity” embodied by “resonance” closely aligns with APEC’s vision of a “dynamic and harmonious family”—seeking connection through difference and achieving coexistence through openness.
The contest’s new visual identity echoes APEC’s main visual language. Drawing inspiration from “Pengcheng,” Shenzhen’s traditional alias, the design continues to take Eastern culture as its foundation, while incorporating elements of feathers and silk. These elements reflect Shenzhen’s urban character as a special economic zone defined by pioneering innovation and cultural exchange.
The Dalang Cup has always encouraged designers to create not only beautiful garments, but also bridges and mediums capable of carrying resonance. It calls on designers to pursue innovative experimentation and bold practice, using technology to drive fashion, guiding the future through green development, and expressing environmental responsibility and humanistic care through sustainable design. This philosophy aligns closely with APEC’s commitment to inclusive and sustainable growth, aiming to foster shared cultural and economic prosperity through multidimensional cooperation within the fashion industry.
With higher standards and a clearer direction for advancement, the renewed competition opens a two-way dialogue in which Eastern wisdom is invited to speak with confidence. It seeks to find kindred voices and inspire resonance worldwide, nurturing deeper, more meaningful understanding and exchange.
Innovation: Rooted in Localization, Unleashing Trend-Setting Energy
This edition of the contest introduces a comprehensive innovation of its competition structure, establishing two distinct tracks: the Global Track and the Shenzhen Track. The new system is designed to strengthen international participation while highlighting Shenzhen’s unique design advantages as the birthplace of the Dalang Cup.
Submissions for the two tracks are accepted independently. The Global Track is open to fashion design enthusiasts, established designers, independent designers, corporate designers, as well as faculty and students from colleges and universities across countries and regions worldwide. The Shenzhen Track is open to local fashion enterprises in Shenzhen and designers who work, live, or study in the city. In addition, the contest introduces the “Pengcheng Star” honor to encourage outstanding designers, enterprises, and brands rooted in Shenzhen to actively participate, and to jointly promote deeper development and innovative breakthroughs in Shenzhen’s fashion design sector.
In terms of the evaluation process, The 15th Dalang Cup China Women's Fashion Design Contest introduces an innovative public voting component at the preliminary stage, alongside expert review. The public is invited to vote on shortlisted entries, with the finalists ultimately selected through a combination of professional jury assessment and public voting. This new selection mechanism balances industry development trends with diverse aesthetic perspectives, achieving both strong professional depth and broad public engagement.
Openness: Marching Towards the World, Deeply Linking Diverse Cultures
Amid the upsurge of cultural confidence, the Dalang Cup promotes outstanding traditional Chinese culture through design, telling compelling stories of Chinese fashion. By translating tradition into high-quality works and products suited to contemporary lifestyles through advanced design language, the contest puts the concept of cultural export into practice through tangible creative outcomes. In recent years, Chinese designers have become increasingly active on the Dalang Cup stage. Drawing on Eastern aesthetic heritage and modern design expression, they have crossed cultural boundaries and demonstrated the strength and appeal of Chinese design to the world.
For international audiences, the Dalang Cup serves as an important window into Chinese culture. Through the contest’s global promotion and outreach, many overseas designers have come to understand Chinese fashion through the platform and have been drawn to Shenzhen as a dynamic center of creativity. Participation from international designers has risen sharply in recent years. At the 14th edition alone, overseas submissions increased fourfold year on year, while the number of Chinese contestants with overseas backgrounds also rose significantly. Designers from Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan, as well as from overseas regions, have been particularly active, accounting for 33% of participants and emerging as a notable highlight of the competition.
The 15th Dalang Cup China Women's Fashion Design Contest will continue to expand participation from global design talent, comprehensively elevating the competition to align with international high-end standards and attracting more designers from internationally renowned brands. Throughout the contest, it will increase the publicity and promotion of APEC economies, using cultural exchange as a point of connection to contribute to the building of a dynamic and harmonious Asia-Pacific community.
Cooperation: Win-Win Collaboration, Creating Unlimited Platform Value
The development of The 15th Dalang Cup China Women's Fashion Design Contest has extended beyond the boundaries of the fashion industry. In recent years, through cross-sector collaboration, the contest has actively explored and activated the potential of the consumer market.
Alongside the main competition, previous editions have featured a series of carefully curated initiatives, including the Dalang Cup China Women’s Fashion Design Contest Designer Promotion Program, the “Wave Surges in the Bay Area, Fashion Leads the Way” Dalang Fashion Town Industry Promotion Conference, and the 2025 Dalang Cup China Women’s Fashion Design Contest × IDOLE Trend Art Exhibition. Through innovative business collaboration models and industry-connection mechanisms, the contest has continued to explore new pathways for cross-sector integration within the fashion industry, establishing a demonstrative model for the convergence of commerce and art in China’s women’s wear design sector.
In terms of cross-sector linkage, the contest has hosted initiatives such as the Dalang Cup 100-Person Fashion Live Show and the Fashion Brand Consumption Season, which quickly gained popularity and energized local commercial activity. It has also taken the lead in partnering with technology companies, using AI to transform creative inspiration into physical garments based on the contest theme, showcasing cutting-edge technological applications. At the same time, the contest has engaged in in-depth collaboration with international fashion hotels, expanding the application of spatial aesthetics and promoting the extension of fashion design into lifestyle services. The contest’s runway has become a favorite among fashion bloggers and influencers and is widely recognized by commercial brands as an important channel for reaching younger audiences. Inspired by the Dalang Cup, these brands have integrated Eastern cultural elements with modern design language, activating new expressions of contemporary Chinese style.
The 15th Dalang Cup China Women's Fashion Design Contest will continue to actively promote cooperation with partners across diverse sectors, creating greater platform value for original Chinese design.
As countless colors gather, awaiting the first roll of new thunder, The 15th Dalang Cup China Women's Fashion Design Contest, themed “Resonance # East,” extends a global invitation for co-creation, injecting new vitality into the future of the fashion industry.
From a local platform to a global vision, The 15th Dalang Cup China Women's Fashion Design Contest lives up to expectations and is poised to deliver an exceptional showcase!
More Information About the Contest
This year, the competition system has been comprehensively upgraded and is divided into two independent entry tracks: the Global Track and the Shenzhen Track. The new structure is designed to strengthen international participation while highlighting Shenzhen’s design strengths as the birthplace of the Dalang Cup. In addition, the contest introduces the “Pengcheng Star” honor to encourage outstanding designers, enterprises, and brands rooted in Shenzhen to actively participate, and to jointly promote deeper development and innovative breakthroughs in Shenzhen’s fashion design sector.
Global Track:
Monetary Awards
Gold Medal (Jinlang Award): RMB 300,000, 1 winner;
Silver Medal (Langchao Award): RMB 200,000, 1 winner;
Bronze Medal (Langhua Award): RMB 100,000, 1 winner;
Top 10 Designers (Excellence Award): RMB 10,000 per person, 10 winners;
Finalist Award: RMB 5,000 per person, 7 winners;
Shenzhen Track:
Pengcheng Star: RMB 30,000, 1 winner;
Finalist Award: RMB 5,000 per person, 2 winners;
(All monetary awards for both the Global Track and Shenzhen Track are inclusive of a 20% individual income tax, which will be withheld and paid by the organizing committee. Awards are not cumulative for the same entry across different tracks.)
Additional Honors:
Exhibition of Award-Winning Works at China International Fashion Week (Dalang Cup China Women’s Fashion Design Contest Special Showcase);
Promotion and industry matchmaking sessions for outstanding winning designers.
Entry Requirements:
1. The competition is open to fashion design enthusiasts worldwide, including established designers, independent designers, corporate designers, as well as faculty and students from design-related programs at universities (including universities, vocational colleges, and technical and vocational institutions). Each entry may be submitted by an individual or a team of up to two members. Participants in the Shenzhen Track must work, live, or study in Shenzhen and are required to provide relevant supporting documentation. Participants may freely choose between the two tracks but must clearly indicate their selection. Each design may be submitted to only one track; submissions entered into both tracks will be deemed invalid.
2. The competition evaluates and encourages participants’ comprehensive capabilities. All entries must be independently completed by the participants, including concept development, design, submission, and the production of physical garments after shortlisting.
3. Entries must align with the theme of this competition, incorporate international fashion trends, and demonstrate clear contemporary cultural characteristics as well as commercial value.
4. All entries must be original, unpublished works. Participants are required to submit a signed Originality Commitment and Ownership Confirmation Letter together with their entries. Plagiarism, imitation, or any form of infringement is strictly prohibited. All works within a submitted series may participate only in this competition. In the event of any violation, the entry will be disqualified, and any resulting legal disputes or consequences shall be borne solely by the participant.
5. Entries must not contain any personal information or identifying marks of the participants. Any submission that violates this requirement will be deemed invalid.
6. Participants are required to submit the following materials:
(1) Color renderings and technical structure drawings for four women’s wear designs, including two creative designs and two commercial designs developed from the creative concepts;
(2) The submission size must be 27 cm × 40 cm. Both hand-drawn and computer-generated works are accepted. Technical structure drawings and main fabric samples must be presented clearly;
(3) A design description, including materials such as sources of inspiration, design concepts, fashion elements, and style or structural drawings, to support the presentation of the submitted works.
Evaluation Rules:
1. The competition adheres to the principles of openness, fairness, and impartiality, and implements a scientific and rigorous evaluation process in accordance with established procedures and scoring standards.
A total of 23 entries from the Global Track and Shenzhen Track will advance to the finals, including 20 entries from the Global Track and 3 entries from the Shenzhen Track. The evaluation process is outlined as follows:
Global Track
(1) After the submission period closes, a professional jury will conduct a preliminary review of all entries and select the top 30 works. The renderings of these 30 shortlisted works will be arranged in alphabetical order based on the first letter of the participants’ names and made available for online public voting;
(2) The top three entries from the online voting will advance directly to the Global Track final. From the remaining shortlisted works, the professional jury will select 16 additional entries, in descending order of ranking, to advance to the final as substitutes;
(3) The first-place winner (1 person) of the 2025 Shenzhen Skills Competition – Longhua District Color Coordinator (Fashion Design Direction) Vocational Skills Competition will be directly shortlisted for the Global Track final of the Dalang Cup and will participate in the final evaluation in accordance with the competition requirements.
(4) Following the preliminary review, a total of 20 entries will be selected through a combination of jury evaluation and online voting to advance to the Global Track final.
Shenzhen Track
(1) After the submission period closes, a professional jury will conduct a preliminary review of all entries and select the top five works. The renderings of these five shortlisted works will be arranged in alphabetical order based on the first letter of the participants’ names and made available for online public voting;
(2) The top three entries in the online voting will advance to the final of the Dalang Cup Shenzhen Track.
(3) Following the preliminary review, a total of three entries will be selected through a combination of jury evaluation and online voting to advance to the final.
2. A total of 23 entries from the Global Track and Shenzhen Track will be publicly announced online. Upon completion of the public announcement period, shortlisted participants will proceed to the garment production stage.
3. During the garment production period, the organizing committee will coordinate with high-quality fabric enterprises to offer shortlisted participants free fabric selection on a voluntary basis.
4. Participants must complete the production of physical garments within the specified timeframe and attend the final presentation and award ceremony. The organizing committee will convene an expert jury for on-site evaluation to determine and confer all awards.
Competition Schedule:
1. Entry Submission Period: December 26, 2025 - April 3, 2026
2. Preliminary Evaluation: April 6, 2026
3. Online Voting and Public Announcement Period: April 7, 2026 - April 19, 2026
4. Garment Production Period: April 20, 2026 - July 24, 2026
5. Final Competition: the end of July 2026
6. Special Showcase of Winning Works at China Fashion Week Dalang Cup: Early to Mid-September 2026
(Subject to the official schedule of China Fashion Week Autumn 2026)
Registration Channel and Contact Information:
Registration QR Code (Includes the registration form and the Originality Commitment and Ownership Confirmation Letter)
Notes:
1. Upon successful registration, participants will receive a unique competition number. Please print the registration form and the Originality Commitment and Ownership Confirmation Letter, and mail them together with the entry materials to the competition organizing committee. Submitted design drawings will not be returned; participants are advised to retain their own copies.
2. For group entries (maximum of two participants), the registration form and the Originality Commitment and Ownership Confirmation Letter must clearly indicate all group member information. These documents should be printed together and sent by courier to the organizing committee along with the submitted works.
Express Mailing Address for Entries:
5th Floor, No. 18 Chaoyangmen North Street
Chaoyang District, Beijing, China
China National Garment Association
(Organizing Committee of the Dalang Cup)
Consultation Contact:
[Important for Submission] Key Matters Concerning Design Copyright:
1. The organizing committee reserves the right to reproduce, promote, exhibit, edit, and publish submitted works in any form, without additional remuneration. For all award-winning works (specifically including the Golden Wave Award, Wave Award, Spray Award, and Pengcheng Star), the copyright (excluding the right of attribution) shall vest in the competition organizing committee. This includes all commercial and non-commercial uses of the winning works, without the need to obtain further consent from the participants. Submission of an entry shall be deemed as full acceptance of this provision.
2. After the final competition, the four award-winning sets, the Golden Wave Award, Wave Award, Spray Award, and Pengcheng Star (including complete garments, accessories, and overall styling), shall be uniformly retained by the organizing committee. Participants shall not assert ownership over, or request the return of, these works.
3. Participants must ensure that they hold full and independent intellectual property rights to their submissions and that the entries do not infringe upon the lawful rights or interests of any third party. The organizing committee is not obligated to conduct substantive reviews of ownership or intellectual property rights related to the submissions. Any direct or indirect claims, disputes, or legal liabilities arising from infringement or alleged infringement of intellectual property rights (including but not limited to patents, trademarks, design copyrights, ownership rights, or other related rights) shall be borne solely by the participants and shall not involve the competition organizers. The organizing committee reserves the right to pursue liability for any damage to the reputation of the competition or the organizers caused by such infringement;
4. The final right of interpretation of this competition rests with the China National Garment Association and the Organizing Committee of the Dalang Cup China Women’s Fashion Design Contest.
