In the past two years, corduroy makes a comeback and once again becomes the fashionable trend. It is no longer the preserve of traditional menswear but appears in almost every color, every brand and every style.
Being popular in 1980s and 1990s, corduroy attracted a lot of attention and admiration, and people wearing it must be some fashionable icon around others. Changzhou, a city manufacturing corduroy back then, was well-known across the nation.
It was Changzhou that first developed the fabric in China.
Corduroy first became popular in France and England in the 1700s, where it was named corde du roi, or “cord of the king”. It even had the value of gold.
The trial production of corduroy in China began from 1930s by a man called Liu Guojun. A nationalist of Changzhou, Liu went to Japan in disguise and spent three months there learning the skills to manufacture corduroy and the management experiences of Japanese industries.
When time came to 1936, Liu purchased manufacturing equipment from abroad to produce corduroy. In 1954, Jiufengchang Dyeing Factory, the predecessor of Changzhou Corduroy Printing and Dyeing Factory, brought Changzhou corduroy into the spotlight.
Combined waxing and brushing machine of that time
In 1963, the printing and dyeing cloth storage rate of Changzhou corduroy increased to 90.1 %; the number of varieties has been increased to 71; and the annual output has increased to 15.24 million meters; the annual export volume increased to 2.36 million meters. Till 1977, the varieties of Changzhou corduroy reached 327 and more than 1000 colors. The products have been sold to more than 50 countries and regions, catering to different needs and requirements.
