2026/09/17 Back
Printing requires not a single drop of water, and designs can incorporate a thousand forms of culture. Wensli, which has been deeply engaged in silk for half a century, is using the twin wings of technology and culture to provide a reference sample for the value revaluation of traditional industries. In the first half of this year, Wensli achieved operating revenue of 361 million yuan, a year-on-year increase of 8.29%.
At a time when the consumer market is being swept by new concepts and new categories, Li Jianhua, Chairman of Wensli, said in an exclusive interview with a China Securities Journal reporter: "The way to operate in traditional industries is, first of all, innovation." In his view, true value creation comes from deep cultivation of culture and innovation in technology.
AI Empowerment:
The Technological Transformation of Traditional Silk
In Li Jianhua's eyes, silk has never been an unchanging antique. He believes that "the silk industry can sustain its business not by sticking to old ways, but by continuously launching new products that conform to contemporary consumption habits." In 2005, Wensli transformed from textiles to cultural products, and appeared at the 2008 Olympics and the 2016 G20 Summit, which greatly enhanced Wensli's brand influence. "During the 2016 G20 Summit, Wensli products were in short supply," Li Jianhua recalled.
In 2018, Wensli used technological empowerment to advance its second transformation. Li Jianhua frankly admitted that compared with international luxury goods, Wensli is not inferior in raw materials, fabrics, and printing and dyeing processes; the gap mainly lies in design. "We hope to achieve overtaking on the curve through AI." At present, Wensli has built a graphic database with 700,000 pieces of annotated data. This technological investment has brought a significant decline in marketing expenses, reflecting the substantial improvement in operating efficiency brought by technology.
AI has not only changed design, but also reshaped production. Wensli has overcome the printing and dyeing technology for double-sided silk scarves of the same color, achieving a 100% identical effect on both sides, and can even complete complex processes such as imitation embroidery and imitation brocade. In addition, through AI calculation, Wensli has achieved waterless printing, precisely controlling the amount of dye to achieve a 100% reaction rate.
Culture as the Core:
The Emotional Value of Silk and Brand Reshaping
Regarding the question of whether young people will still pay for silk, Li Jianhua presented Wensli's consumption data: online sales are mainly among consumers aged 25 to 35, and purchasing behavior mostly has the attribute of gift-giving. "They do not use it themselves, but give it to their parents or relatives and friends." This finding led Wensli to rethink its brand positioning—silk is not only a fabric, but also a carrier of emotional transmission.
Li Jianhua believes that true emotional value should be reflected in personalized customization. "Customizing a silk scarf with zodiac elements for one's mother as a birthday gift has both consumption attributes and emotional value." The personalized design capability that Wensli possesses is precisely an important development direction for the company in the future. But unlike many brands that chase hot topics, Wensli chooses to deeply cultivate cultural connotations and closely integrate silk with China's civilizational heritage.
In recent years, Wensli has focused on expanding silk application scenarios, extending from wearables to home decoration. New products such as silk paintings, silk wallpaper, and silk stools have continued to emerge, and silk masks are especially favored by young consumers. Li Jianhua revealed that Wensli's masks have a very high repurchase rate. This diversification of product structure not only reduces the risk of a single category, but also opens broader space for the company in the capital market.
In terms of brand building, Wensli deliberately strengthens regional and cultural associations. This positioning not only differentiates it from competitors, but also builds a brand moat in consumers' minds.
Beyond Fabric:
The Cross-Boundary Integration of Silk and Big Health
Standing at a new starting point, Wensli's industrial vision has already gone far beyond the scope of traditional fabrics. In recent years, Wensli has actively laid out the big health industry, carried out special silkworm breeding, and promoted research on proteins related to mulberry silkworms through cooperation with universities and hospitals, exploring cross-boundary integration between the silk industry and health technology.
In terms of technological innovation, Wensli is studying the relationship between color and visual perception, exploring the application potential of silk products at the aesthetic and emotional levels. Li Jianhua said that the company cooperates with professional institutions to analyze user feedback on different colors, and these studies will be used to improve product aesthetic design and user experience.
From mulberry leaf tea and mulberry wine to silk protein masks, Wensli is building a big health ecosystem with silk at its core. "The silk industry is not the concept of a piece of fabric," Li Jianhua said. "It covers many aspects such as mulberry leaves, mulberry fruits, and silkworm pupae. We are gradually exploring these fields, and there is new progress every year." These layouts not only expand Wensli's sources of revenue, but also depict a new picture of traditional enterprise transformation and upgrading in the capital market.
In Li Jianhua's eyes, silk is no longer the sediment of history, but an integration of technology and culture, and the value rebirth of a traditional industry in the new era. Under Li Jianhua's leadership, Wensli is making this ancient industrial tree sprout new shoots—rooted in the deepest soil of Chinese culture, while blooming with the most modern technological brilliance.
