The Central Highlands city of Dalat, long known for its knitting industry, is being flooded by woolen products from China, which are putting the livelihood of local knitters under pressure.
Knitted items, ranging from sweaters to scarves and gloves, are widely worn in Dalat, where the temperature plunges to as low as seven degrees in the coldest months of the year.
Woolen goods are sold on just about every street corner and are popular souvenirs for visitors to Dalat.
Although made by highly-skilled knitters, Dalat-made woolen products are inexpensive.
“Tourists are very fond of Dalat-made woolen products,” Bui Thi Ly, a local knitwear shop owner told Sai Gon Tiep Thi (Saigon Marketing) newspaper. “They ask if the items at my shop are locally-made and usually only buy products that are made in Dalat.”
But in recent years, an influx of imported Chinese knitwear has hit the local market, threatening the dominance of locally-made products.
Some shoppers view made-in-China knitwear as better designed and of better quality than the locally made products. They’re also attracted by the wider choice of colors and designs.
“It’s not that I want to buy Chinese woolen products but because Dalat products don’t have many design and they are not fashionable, I have no choice but to buy the imported ones,” said Nguyen Thi Thuy Trang, a 20-year-old local girl.
Local markets are now full of Chinese goods. Dalat shop owners said they preferred Chinese products over the local goods because consumers demanded better designed items.
The people who buy Chinese woolen products are mostly young and middle class. An imported Chinese sweater sells for VND50,000 to VND400,000 (US$2.80-$22.50), while a sweater made in Dalat costs only VND30,000 to VND150,000 ($1.68-$8.50).
The invasion of Chinese goods has not only caused local consumers to turn their backs on local products but also diminished the income of Dalat’s knitters, leaving them with no option but to abandon their craft.
“Living expenses are increasing but we only get paid about VND5,000 to VND13,000 ($0.28 - $0.73) for each item,” said Linh, a local knitter with 18 years of experience. “We are only able to make seven to eight sweaters a day, working from dawn till dusk, and the most we can earn is VND50,000 ($2.80) a day.”
Thuy Hang said the three knitters in her family could only earn a combined monthly income of VND600,000 ($33.72), which barely covered their daily expenses.
“I have no choice but to seek another job,” Hang said.
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