Interview; Julie Lijun VP CLA

1. Can you please share with us your current position/job and profile of the organization you work for?

I am the General Manager of Fornet, one of China’s leading textile care chains.
Founded in 1997, Fornet operates through a franchise plus company-owned model
and has developed nearly 1,900 stores nationwide. Our services cover
comprehensive textile care, including dry cleaning, wet cleaning, leather care, shoe
care, garment alterations, and fabric restoration.

2. In which countries and market sectors of Professional Textile Care did you work and did you gained experiences?

My professional experience has been primarily in China, focusing on the consumer
Professional Textile Care market for garments and household textiles.

3. Could you please describe the most important characteristics and trends of the current PTC markets in terms of customer/market demand characteristics and trends?

The PTC market is becoming increasingly omnichannel, with seamless online and
offline integration now a basic requirement. Customers expect convenience,
efficiency, and digitalized service processes. Emotional value is also gaining
importance, as customers seek trust, care, and brand identity in addition to cleaning
services. Customer loyalty is declining, requiring companies to deliver consistent
quality and differentiated value. Sustainability has become an operational necessity,
with energy efficiency, water recycling, eco-friendly detergents, carbon
reduction, and garment repair serving as key professional standards.

4. What do you see as the most important success factors for today’s PTC companies? Focus on quality control, standard

The most important success factor is delivering stable and relevant value to the
target customer group. Companies must align strategy with customer needs, identify
unmet demands, and adapt quickly to market changes. Balancing value, efficiency,
and cost, supported by effective digital tools, is essential.

5. What are your organization objectives and when would you consider your
organization to be successful?

Our objective is to continuously enhance brand value by focusing on customer value.
Through digital intelligence-driven efficiency and service improvement, we aim to
precisely match evolving customer needs. Success is defined by sustainable growth
combined with strong brand trust and customer recognition.

6. What do you consider the most important future demands of clients in PTC markets?

Future customer demands will include highly personalized services for each
garment, greater convenience, stronger health and environmental awareness, and
increased emotional value. Customers expect not only cleanliness but also care and
reassurance.

7. What are key issues for the PTC companies to fulfill future demands of clients and PTC markets?

Key challenges include difficulty in rapidly identifying changing customer needs,
organizational and cultural transformation, technology-driven competition, rising
labor and rental costs, digital implementation challenges, and balancing
personalized services with standardized management.

8. How important is sustainability / circularity for your current business performance and what do you do to improve your performance as an organization?

Sustainability is now a must-have rather than an optional advantage. It directly
impacts compliance, brand image, and long-term cost structure. We promote ecofriendly solvents and detergents, upgrade to energy-efficient equipment, encourage
reusable packaging and hanger recycling, and extend garment lifespan
through professional repair and restoration services.

9. Do you see sustainability as an important driver for (new) business or as a factor for saving costs?

Sustainability is a major growth driver for us. It aligns with our brand positioning and
resonates with our target customers, strengthening recognition and adding
emotional value to the service experience.

10. Do you see technical innovation as a key factor to enhance your business
performance, and what technologies are essential to provide sustainable and
profitable PTC services in the future?

Technical innovation is essential. Key technologies include green chemistry
avancements, biodegradable materials, intelligent digital systems for customer
insight and process optimization, AI applications, and energy-efficient automated
equipment.

11. What do you see as the most important innovations of the (near) future and how do you believe these innovations will change the way the industry operates?

Major near-future innovations include AI-based personalized textile care advisors,
autonomous logistics solutions, next-generation sustainable cleaning chemistry,
and advanced data analytics systems. These innovations will make the industry
more intelligent, efficient, and customer-focused.

12. According to many publications, a transformation of the PTC industry towards more customer and IT driven processing, is seen as essential to be successful in the future. What is your policy to adapt your business/service model to changing market demands?

We rely on customer insight systems, operate an omnichannel model, standardize
management through IT systems, use data analytics for decision-making, and
actively adopt AI technologies.

13. We have seen an enormous increase in scale of operation of PTC companies. Do you see there will be attractive opportunities also for the more smaller companies and what is needed for small companies to be successful?

Opportunities remain for small companies if they develop clear niche positioning,
leverage lightweight digital tools, maintain operational flexibility, and consider joining
mature franchise systems or supply alliances to gain brand and procurement
advantages.

14. How do you feel the PTC industry can take more market share in the markets of textile cleaning, compared to domestic washing?

The industry can increase market share by enhancing customer experience,
emphasizing professional finishing and fabric protection, improving convenience
through pickup and delivery services, promoting environmental benefits, and shifting
the value proposition toward extending garment lifespan and protecting clothing
value.

15. What do you see as major opportunities for the professional laundry and cleaning industry for the longer term future?

Long-term opportunities include premium textile and luxury care growth, the
convenience economy, digital transformation, green economy trends, and service
diversification such as shoes, bags, alterations, and home textile services.

16. What do you see as major threats for the PTC industry in the coming years?

Major threats include rising operational costs, technological disruption, talent
shortages, price-based competition, and external shocks such as pandemics or
geopolitical instability.

17. What would you say industry (inter-)national associations should do to support the PTC industry professionally, now and in the future?

Industry associations should promote advanced technology development and
standardization, provide sustainability strategy support, and facilitate high-quality
international knowledge exchange.

18. What is your vision on the future perspective of the industry?

The industry has significant growth potential, with room to increase market
penetration. The future will be driven by AI-powered operations and sustainable
technology, integrating equipment and chemistry efficiently to meet
personalized needs while optimizing cost and performance.

19. What is your key-message to your professional PTC colleagues for now and in the future?
Stay focused on customer value while minimizing environmental impact. Combining
professionalism with sustainability is the key to long-term success in the PTC industry.