Price Surge! “Even a Monthly Salary of 20,000 Yuan Can’t Justify the Purchase!” Shanghai Bosses Are Going Crazy…
Luzhong Morning News
2024–12–10 09:17, Shandong
As winter tightens its grip, many people have pulled out their down jackets to face the chill. Some, who love variety, have rushed to buy new ones. However, “shopping addicts” have noticed a major price increase this year. The prices of down jackets have nearly doubled, and some wealthy individuals are saying, “Even with a 20,000 yuan monthly salary, I still hesitate to buy one…”
Recently, the topic of “down jacket price hikes” has repeatedly trended on social media, sparking widespread discussion among netizens.
Down Jackets Are Much More Expensive Than Last Year
Netizens: “Price Hike Has Scared Me Off”
Recently, a consumer named Ms. Cui posted her order online, showing that a down jacket she bought for 300 yuan last year now costs 428 yuan after discounts during this year’s Double Eleven (Singles’ Day) sale. Ms. Cui told reporters, “I didn’t buy it this year because the price scared me off.”
Other consumers have also noticed the steep price increases. A popular down jacket from last year, which claimed to have 90% down content, was priced under 1,000 yuan during the Double Eleven sale last year, but this year the price for the same jacket has risen to around 1,200 yuan.
In Jinan, a large shopping mall was surveyed, revealing the following prices for down jackets:
- A long goose down jacket with 195 grams of down: 2,199 yuan
- A short duck down jacket with 154 grams of down: 1,399 yuan
- A long goose down jacket with 270 grams of down: 2,799 yuan
“Overall, prices have increased by about 500 yuan this year,” said a salesperson from a brand’s store. “The price varies depending on quality, design, and brand.”
Why Are Down Jackets Getting So Expensive?
Raw Material Prices Have Skyrocketed
Industry insiders have stated, “The price of down has risen this year.” Down is a key raw material for down jackets, and over the past year, the price of down has increased significantly.
The most common types of down available on the market are white duck down, gray duck down, white goose down, and gray goose down. Goose down is more expensive than duck down, and white down is of higher quality than gray down.
So why has the price of down soared to an all-time high this year?
One reason is the introduction of new national standards in China：
In April 2022, the new national standards for down jackets were implemented, one of the key changes being the switch from measuring “down content” to measuring “down filling content.” According to data from the Down Industry Golden Net, the price of white duck down has increased from around 350 yuan per kilogram in January last year to about 500 yuan this year, marking a nearly 100% increase. White goose down has risen from about 700 yuan per kilogram to 1,100 yuan, with an increase of nearly 60%.
Another Major Reason Behind the Price Surge of Down is the relatively low pork prices in the earlier period:
According to First Financial News, Wu Yu, the Operations Director of the Down Industry Golden Network, stated that this year’s down market has been “crazy,” with goose down prices hitting a historic high. A key factor contributing to this surge is the previously low pork prices, which led to an increase in pork consumption. This, in turn, affected the demand for duck and goose meat, which impacted the breeding of ducks and geese. Data from the National Waterfowl Industry Technology System shows that in 2023, the slaughter numbers of both ducks and geese continued to decline. According to the China Animal Husbandry Association’s monitoring statistics, the number of ducks slaughtered in China dropped from 4.88 billion in 2019 to 4.22 billion in 2023, while the number of geese slaughtered fell from 630 million to 520 million.
Shandong Zhongxin Food Group Co., Ltd. (formerly part of Xinnong Huan’s poultry division, hereinafter referred to as Zhongxin Food Group) explained that the continuous reduction in domestic duck and goose slaughter numbers in recent years has several unique underlying factors. The high number of ducks and geese slaughtered in 2019 was a special case, as the outbreak of African Swine Fever rapidly boosted the demand for poultry meat, which in turn drove the growth of poultry farming. However, the industry then faced an oversupply issue, compounded by the recovery of pork supply and the cyclical low point of meat prices, leading to a continued reduction in the number of ducks and geese being slaughtered.
Moreover, in response to the industry’s downturn, leading breeding enterprises such as Zhongxin Food Group have used this period to push for internal structural adjustments and industry upgrades, contributing to the decrease in slaughter numbers in the short term. Wu Yu pointed out that the majority of the slaughter numbers we typically see come from large-scale farms and slaughterhouses in northern China, whereas in the south, poultry farming is mostly decentralized and difficult to track. However, during discussions with some southern raw down dealers, he discovered that this year has seen a persistent shortage of raw down. Due to a lack of raw materials, dealers have been continuously pushing up the price of down. Liu Changsheng, Chairman of the Duck Breeder Alliance of the Shandong Livestock Association, told reporters that this year’s raw down prices have risen by 30–40% compared to last year, reaching a historical peak. It is noteworthy that this price increase aligns with the rise in both goose down and duck down prices.
Down Jackets Refurbishing Business Booms
“Young People Are Getting Smarter About Spending”
In the face of new down jackets costing thousands of yuan, some are feeling the sting of the price hike. However, some savvy Shanghai residents have found a cost-effective solution — refurbishing old down jackets.
By utilizing refurbishment services, they can repurpose unused down jackets into warm and comfortable new products, such as duvet covers. Many stores offering down jacket and duvet refurbishment services have seen a surge in demand recently!
On December 9, 2024, reporters visited a down jacket refurbishment shop in Jiading District, Shanghai, where several customers were consulting with the staff. “I have several down jackets at home that I no longer wear. Instead of letting them take up space, why not repurpose them into warm and cozy duvet covers?” said one local resident, Ms. Geng Honglan.
The cost of refurbishing down jackets is very affordable. Ms. Geng shared that she refurbished two down jackets — one for 290 yuan and another for 380 yuan. Another sporty down jacket cost just a little over 200 yuan, making the process quite cost-effective.
Ms. Jiao Fenglan mentioned that compared to duvet covers in the mall that can easily cost two or three thousand yuan, using old down jackets to make a duvet only costs about 400 yuan.
Store owner Yi Zhongxia shared that the cost-effectiveness of down jacket refurbishment has become quite evident. During the peak season, the shop refurbishes six to seven duvets or five jackets daily, ensuring strict quality control to avoid issues like down leakage.
The shift from “buying new” to “refurbishing old” is driven not only by the high cost of down but also by concerns about the quality of some down jackets. The refurbishment process uses fully automated machines to extract, disinfect, filter, and refill the down, ensuring both efficiency and hygiene.
Increased Popularity of Down Jacket Refurbishment
In Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, the down jacket refurbishment business has also been booming. Several shop owners in the area reported good sales, with an average of six or seven orders for refurbishment each day. Since September, the business has been consistently busy, and while most customers are still older, “smart young people” are increasingly embracing the trend. One young woman recently brought in a pile of old down jackets, hoping to transform them into duvet covers for just a few hundred yuan.
A Thoughtful Approach to Sustainability in Fashion: A Shift Towards Textile Circularity
After reading about the recent surge in down jacket prices and the increasing popularity of refurbishing old ones, I couldn’t help but think about how this trend reflects a growing shift towards sustainability. It’s impressive to see how people are beginning to embrace alternatives like refurbishing old down jackets rather than automatically opting for brand new ones.
This is a great example of how textile-to-textile recycling works. Instead of breaking down old garments into raw materials like fibers — a process that consumes a lot of energy and resources — refurbishing existing products into new ones is a much more cost-effective and environmentally friendly solution. It’s exactly what we need in the fashion industry: recycling what already exists instead of constantly manufacturing new products from scratch.
At DoDoBird Used Clothing, we’ve always believed that second-hand items hold value — not just in terms of cost, but also in their potential to reduce waste. Buying and selling high-quality second-hand garments not only cuts down on environmental impact, but also helps create a more sustainable fashion ecosystem. Instead of turning old clothes into fibers to make new products, why not just reuse what’s already wearable and still has value?
I find it refreshing to see that, while people still love to shop and indulge in new items, there’s a noticeable shift toward smarter, more sustainable purchasing decisions. This change in mindset — choosing to refurbish instead of buy new — shows that people are becoming more conscious consumers. And this, I believe, is what will drive the fashion industry toward more eco-friendly and sustainable practices.
The growing trend of rational consumption — whether it’s buying second-hand or refurbishing old items — is an exciting shift. It encourages all of us, even as businesses, to rethink our approach. For brands like ours, it’s a reminder that sustainability doesn’t just mean producing new “green” products, but also making better use of what’s already out there. We’re happy to see more people moving away from the mindset of “always buying new” to “buying smart” — it’s not just good for the wallet, it’s better for the planet, too.
Did You Buy a Down Jacket This Year?
How much did it cost? Would you consider refurbishing your old down jacket instead?
Let’s discuss in the comments section below!
- #Sustainability
- #CircularEconomy
- #TextileRecycling
- #EcoFriendlyFashion
- #SecondHandFashion
- #DownJacket
- #Refurbishment
- #SustainableLiving
- #FashionTrends
- #SmartConsumption
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