The final of the 19th China Creative Challenges-Time-Honored Brands & Chinese Fashion Trend Innovation Design Special Contest was recently held in DeqingCounty. This year’s competition introduced Mogan Mountain as a new thematic focus, and together with MAXAM toothpaste, threegun (a textile brand), Shanghai Huangpu Cultural Tourism Group Co., Ltd, and Yuyuan Garden & Old Town God’s Temple Pear Syrup, extended invitations to young designers. A total of 3,492 designs were received from 422 universities across China and 2 overseas universities. Ultimately, 179 teams made it to the finals, with 27 first prizes, 60 second prizes, and 90 third prizes awarded.

At the award ceremony, time-honored brand enterprises signed agreements with emerging designers. The “University Alliance for Innovative Design of Time-Honored Brands” was also established simultaneously, with eight universities set to serve as “centers for innovation” for time-honored brands, injecting fresh vitality into traditional brands through the power of design.

For three consecutive years, the event has chosen Deqing as its venue, reflecting the county’s unique charm: it possesses both the dynamic energy of innovation and entrepreneurship and offers a poetic and livable environment, providing a broad stage for young talents to realize their ambitions. Leveraging the momentum of this year’s competition, Deqing conducted on-site promotions of its “Youth Innovation City”policies and introduced five major youth innovation and entrepreneurship communities. Five youth innovation teams from East China University of Science and Technology found precise matches and settled in Deqing. The Moganshan International Tourist Resort issued a recruitment call for youth resource spaces.

During the previous competition, the Yangtze River Delta Research and Practice Base and the “Youth in Rural Areas” University Student Rural Cultural and Creative Laboratory settled in Shangbai Village, Wuyang Sub-district. Now, it has emerged as a flagship project of rural entrepreneurship for young returnees.