The hair product industry in Heze, a pillar industry in southwestern Shandong Province, started in the 1970s with villagers in Juancheng County spontaneously purchasing human hair. After decades of development, it has formed a complete industrial chain covering initial processing of raw hair, hair extension weaving, and high-end hairpiece customization. The industry scale continues to expand. Currently, there are over 1,500 hair product processing enterprises in the city, employing approximately 100,000 people, processing 5,000 tons of raw hair annually, and producing 30 million pieces of hairpieces, hair extensions, and other products annually. Among these, hair extensions hold a 70% global market share.
In the process of internationalization, Heze hair products have demonstrated strong export capabilities. In 2024, the city's total import and export volume of hair products reached 2.82 billion yuan, accounting for 4.5% of the city's total import and export value; in the first seven months of this year alone, the import and export volume reached 2.029 billion yuan. Products are exported to more than 80 countries and regions in North America, Europe, and Africa, establishing a solid position in the international market and becoming an important force driving local foreign trade growth.
Faced with the new international market situation, the Heze Municipal Commerce Bureau actively guides enterprises to innovate their business models and promote industrial transformation and upgrading through the development of cross-border e-commerce. Currently, over 120 hair product enterprises in Juancheng County are engaged in cross-border e-commerce, utilizing international social media platforms such as Facebook and Instagram for targeted marketing. By introducing international logistics companies such as DHL and FedEx, the overall logistics costs of the industry have been reduced by approximately 30%, and the cross-border transaction cycle has been significantly shortened.
In terms of platform construction, Heze City focuses on building a professional industrial ecosystem, helping enterprises reduce costs and increase efficiency through the construction of public service platforms such as bonded warehouses and cross-border e-commerce comprehensive service centers. The operation of the Heze Bonded Logistics Center has improved capital turnover efficiency, and the airport's international cargo terminal has shortened raw material transportation time by 2-3 days. The commissioning of the Juancheng hair product specialized bonded warehouse has further improved trade facilitation.
These measures have promoted the transformation and upgrading of Heze's hair product industry from scale agglomeration to quality and efficiency integration, not only standardizing enterprise operations but also consolidating its leading position as a global high-end human hair processing and export base.