The Hong Kong fur industry dates back to the 1930s when several experienced furriers from China set up workshops and retail outlets in Hong Kong. From the domestic market at the start, the trade extended progressively to international buyers looking to source quality furs. Hong Kong is now the world’s largest exporter of fine fur garments.

In 1979, the Hong Kong Fur Federation was established to coordinate fur trade and promote its development. A thriving organization with over 150 members, the Federation is an active member of the International Fur Trade Federation (IFTF).

The industry’s sustained growth over the past 30 years is testament to the Federation’s capability of anticipating, adapting and developing market trends. Our value-for-money, consistency of quality and reliability of delivery are simply the best in the world.

With the worldwide vogue for fur, Hong Kong furriers have continuously improved their excellent craftsmanship and explored new techniques that enable fur designers to develop new themes. New look furs – lightweight and colourful, dyed, sheared, plucked or knitted, double-faced or textured – showcase the versatility of fur as a high fashion fabric for all seasons with increasing appeal to younger consumers.

Market-wise, the Federation actively promotes the fur industry with a wide range of activities. Hong Kong International Fur & Fashion Fair tops the list and takes place every year at Hong Kong Convention & Exhibition Centre. As the most important event for sourcing quality fur garments and raw materials, the 2007 Fair expanded further its scale to 24,000 square metres to facilitate trade with a 13% increase in the number of registered exhibitors, both members and non-members.

The annual Fur Design Competition, organized by the Young Executive Committee, provides a great opportunity for young designers and students to show off creativity in fur fashion. The 2007 Competition was another resounding success with 380 entries.? The finalists’ inspiring works were showcased under the theme of The Myriad Facets of Luxe at a gala dinner at InterContinental Hong Kong. Eight renowned designers took their trend-setting collection to the stage at the “Designers Love Fur” epilogue - the grand finale of the annual extravaganza.

As part of commitment to broadening its development horizons, the Federation initiated a Strategic Planning Advisory Committee, and invited nine Hong Kong leading figures to join the Committee and share their insights.

As a business partner of the Hong Kong Education and Manpower Bureau’s School-Business Partnership Programme, the Federation organized a fur seminar – Fur & Ecology – for primary and secondary school teachers to raise the industry’s profile. Moreover, the Federation also sponsored a pro-fur education drama touring over 25 primary schools in March 2007.

Proactive advertisement campaigns are launched annually to promote fur fashion in Hong Kong and the Chinese mainland, plus local workshops and seminars to extend fur applications by designers and to arouse young talents’ interest. Every effort is made to underline the versatility of fur as a major fashion fabric for international designers. Major initiatives include the participation in Hong Kong Fashion Week and collaboration with Hong Kong Fashion Designers Association in the “Designers Love Fur” project.

Extensive trade seminars are also organized regularly for members to keep abreast of the latest trade regulations and related issues. For instance, a seminar on Origin Assured (OA) Label was held last year to address manufacturers’ concerns.

On the mainland, the Federation led a delegation to visit fur farms in Rongcheng, Weihai and Wendeng in Shandong Province and Dalian in Liaoning Province last year to enhance communication and exchange information with fur farmers.

Collaboration is highly valued in the process of development. The Federation has maintained a close link with Hong Kong Clothing Industry Training Authority through the Fur Resource Centre, an information source for designers, students, manufacturers, merchandisers, consumers and the media.

The Asian Fur Trade Conference was inaugurated in Hong Kong in 1995, involving four trade association members: Hong Kong, Japan, Korea and China. The annual Conference demonstrates the Federation’s commitment to promoting fur trade with different bodies and organizations in the region.

Internationally, the Federation spearheads Hong Kong’s presence in overseas trade fairs and exhibitions.? For example, an annual Fair is held in Japan, while in 2006, Hong Kong furriers teamed with Japanese designers to develop and stage an impressive fur collection, together with the fur seminar attracted a lot of attention from Japanese industry players and media. In addition, a promotional booth was set up at “Style Hong Kong, Beijing” with a mini Fur Gala parade last year.

Furthering its efforts to explore the emerging markets, the Federation organized a fur mission to Kiev, Ukraine and Vilnius, Lithuania, plus a side trip to Dubai. The delegation successfully raised Hong Kong’s profile as the world’s premier centre for top quality fur products.