By the mid‐1990s, China had become the world's largest producer (and exporter) of textiles and garments. It is widely believed that China's textile industry will be one of the biggest beneficiaries of World Trade Organization (WTO) accession, thereby enabling Chinese textile firms to use foreign‐invested enterprises to gain direct access to overseas purchasing networks, and helping to boost China's textile and clothing exports; however, most Chinese garment manufacturers have been in existence for only a relatively short period and are small in size. The Chinese garment industry is made up largely of small enterprises; run‐of‐the‐mill small garment manufacturers suffer because of the incomplete adoption of the market mechanism, restricted access to information and unfair competition. These smaller manufacturers remain dependent on traditional business models, and as a result, their operating costs have remained very high. Concludes that the vast majority of Chinese garment manufacturers are thus engaged in a constant struggle to stay in business.