Shanghai Spring and Summer Fashion Week on October 21, 2020. Photo: IC

The 2021 Autumn/Winter Shanghai Fashion Week will kick off on April 6 to further energize the consumer market, said the Shanghai municipal commission of commerce on Monday.

Shanghai recorded a 48.6 percent year-on-year growth in retail sales in the first two months of 2021, higher than the country's average pace in the same period, said the commission.

Data showed that over 60 percent of the brands participating in the fashion week had seen marked sales growth in 2020, with nearly 40 percent having opened new bricks-and-mortar stores.

With strict epidemic prevention and control measures in place, next month's event will wholly resume offline design launches with over 100 new product launches in the city's fashion landmarks.

There will also be online launches via a newly-created event called "Shanghai Fashion & Lifestyle Carnival" to promote domestic brands and designers.

Debuted in 2003, Shanghai Fashion Week has been a significant fashion showcase, trade, and exchange platform in Asia. It went fully digital after the COVID-19 pandemic a year ago and was rebooted offline in October last year.