Leading domestic men's clothing giants are flocking to the outdoor sector, aiming to compete with Descente for the middle-class consumer business.

Traditional men's clothing brands are collectively "heading for the mountains".

The 2026 interim reports of listed men's apparel companies have basically been finalized. According to the disclosed data, Heilan Home ranks first with a revenue scale of 12.42 billion yuan; Youngor is the most profitable, with a net profit of over 2.1 billion yuan in the period, of which the investment segment contributes more than 80%.

According to incomplete statistics from Time Finance, the average gross sales profit margin of 20 listed apparel companies that have disclosed their interim reports is about 45.26%. Among them, the high-end men's clothing brand Saint Angelo and Biem.l.feng, known as the "Moutai in the apparel industry", have gross profit margins of 64.89% and 75.88% respectively.

Some men's clothing enterprises still maintain growth in their main business revenue, but pressure is emerging on the profit side. Behind the phenomenon of rising revenue without rising profit, it is not a simple shrinkage of market demand, but the gradually exposed ceiling of the original business model and customer group of traditional men's clothing.

The business men's clothing market is growing sluggishly, and men's clothing enterprises are turning their attention to the outdoor track. For example, Heilan Home has launched the outdoor brand HLA POW, while Biem.l.feng takes the lead in the operation of Japanese outdoor brand Snow Peak in China.

They need to stick to their core apparel business while trying to transform into the outdoor business, competing with outdoor brands that already have a certain market share, but this cannot be achieved overnight. Judging from the first-half interim reports, the outdoor business layout of various men's clothing brands is still in the investment stage, and there is still a gap from large-scale profitability.

It will take time for men's clothing brands to earn profits that brands like Descente have achieved.

1

Traditional men's clothing has passed the dividend period, and brands represented by Heilan Home are collectively "heading for the mountains"

From the 1990s to around 2012, it was the golden development period of China's local traditional men's clothing. Through branding, capitalization and channel model innovation, they quickly completed the original accumulation. However, with the reduction of consumption scenarios, the disappearance of channel dividends, and the addition of international fast fashion and sports outdoor brands to the competition, how to upgrade from "men's wardrobe" to a "multi-scenario wardrobe" covering multiple scenarios has become the core issue faced by traditional men's clothing brands.

From the first half of 2022 to the first half of 2026, the revenue of Heilan Home's main brand increased from 7.406 billion yuan to 9.405 billion yuan, but the growth showed fluctuations, with the growth rates in the same period being -7.35%, 16.73%, 3.15%, -5.86% and 12.03% respectively; the gross profit margin of the main brand increased from 43.57% to 48.94%.

In the long run, although both the revenue and gross profit margin of the main brand have increased, the overall profitability of the company has started to face pressure. From the first half of 2024 to the first half of 2026, the growth rates of Heilan Home's attributable net profit were -2.54%, -3.42% and -5.86% respectively.

Apart from the main brand, in the first half of 2026, the revenue of other brand segments consisting of OVV, YeeHoO and Black Whale reached 1.94 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 29.34%; the revenue of the government and enterprise-oriented group custom segment was 756 million yuan, and the proportion of the two businesses in the total revenue is still not high.

Youngor, which mainly operates mid-to-high-end business men's clothing, also reflects the current situation of the men's clothing market. As the first interim report after Li Hanqiong took over as chairman, Youngor's total revenue in the first half of 2026 was 5.149 billion yuan, the attributable net profit was 2.123 billion yuan, and the net profit margin reached 41.25%. However, the high profit does not come from the clothing business: the investment segment contributed 1.815 billion yuan of attributable net profit, accounting for more than 85% of the total profit; while the attributable net profit of the fashion segment as the foundation was 245 million yuan, and the revenue of the clothing business was 3.249 billion yuan, a year-on-year decrease of 1.46%.

Biem.l.feng enters the high-end men's clothing market with golf scenarios, serving high-net-worth middle-aged business men, and obtains high-end pricing capabilities relying on high pricing and strong product strength, with the price range covering 800 to 4700 yuan. It is one of the few men's clothing enterprises in China that have mastered high-end pricing power.

In the first half of 2026, Biem.l.feng's revenue was 2.601 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 23.66%, and the attributable net profit was 491 million yuan, a year-on-year increase of 18.41%. Both revenue and profit achieved double-digit growth, and the gross profit margin reached 75.88%. By category, tops dominated by T-shirts and Polo shirts contributed 56.46% of the revenue, and the gross profit margin of this category was as high as 80.97%.

Looking at the three leading men's clothing enterprises comprehensively, the traditional men's clothing industry has not completely lost the market, but if they want to break through the stock dilemma, the outdoor track has become a new direction targeted by some men's clothing enterprises.

In 2025, Heilan Home launched the professional sports brand HLA POW, choosing the cross-country running track as the breakthrough, and entering the outdoor circle through event naming to shape the professional sports tone.

Photo by Time Finance

In addition, Heilan Home has also laid out the equestrian field. The 2026 semi-annual report disclosed that a subsidiary of Heilan Home acquired 100% equity of CAVALLERIA TOSCANA INTERNATIONAL SRL, and obtained the trademark rights of the high-end equestrian brand Cavalleria Toscana in Chinese Mainland, Hong Kong (China), Macao (China), Taiwan (China) and the ten ASEAN countries.

Different from Heilan Home's brand incubation from scratch, Biem.l.feng chose to take over the mature overseas outdoor brand directly. In June 2026, Biem.l.feng obtained the full-category operation right of Snow Peak in China, covering Japanese-style apparel, camping equipment and Korean-style apparel, and set up an independent business unit to operate this business.

For traditional men's clothing companies, the outdoor track has a high degree of overlap with the existing customer group, and the growth rate and gross profit margin are also higher than the average level of the main men's clothing business. Taking Descente as an example, in 2025, Descente's annual turnover in the Chinese market exceeded 10 billion yuan for the first time, becoming the third 10-billion-level brand after Anta and FILA; in the first half of 2026, the gross profit margin of other brand departments where Descente is located reached 73.1%, which is close to the 75.88% gross profit margin of Biem.l.feng, known as the "Moutai in the apparel industry".

The China Outdoor Sports Industry Development Report (2024-2025) released by the Department of Sports Economy of the General Administration of Sport of China shows that as of early April 2025, the number of people participating in outdoor sports in China has exceeded 400 million. That is to say, nearly 1/3 of China's population participates in outdoor sports, and the outdoor market may still have potential space.

2

The outdoor story has just begun, and apparel brands have not yet made profits

While targeting the outdoor business of men's clothing at the same time, different enterprises take completely different paths.

This year, HLA POW will exclusively name four cross-country races: the Haidian Station of Beijing Cross-Country Running Challenge and the Nyingchi Basongcuo Super Cross-Country Race in Tibet in September, the Ningxia Helan Mountain Super Cross-Country Race in October, and the Wuxi Yixing Yangxian 100 Cross-Country Challenge in November. In the named races, the participating equipment provided by HLA POW for the contestants covers a full range of jackets, cross-country socks and quick-drying hats.

Taking the Haidian Station held from September 12 to 13 as an example, the title sponsors are Heilan Home and HLA POW, the official partner is C'estbon, and there are four other official sponsors including Coros and Max Nutrition. The new brand naming cross-country race aims to enter the core runner circle and build brand awareness, rather than directly driving sales.

This business of Heilan Home is still in its early stage. As of September 22, the number of fans of HLA POW's official Tmall flagship store is less than 10,000. The best-selling product is a soft-shell jacket priced at 498 yuan with a discounted price of 298 yuan, with a cumulative sales volume of more than 400 pieces; the JD flagship store opened in August this year, and currently has less than 600 fans. Recently, a clerk at a Heilan Home store in Beijing told Time Finance that HLA POW has not opened offline stores yet, and its revenue is not listed separately in the financial report.

At present, the truly profitable sports business of Heilan Home in the first half of the year is opening stores for Adidas. In 2024, Heilan Home obtained the exclusive retail agency right of Adidas's FCC series in Chinese Mainland through its holding subsidiary Sports, and as of the end of June this year, it has opened 723 stores across the country, positioned between full-price stores and outlet stores. Within one year, the number of Adidas FCC stores authorized and operated by Heilan Home increased by 194.

In addition to cross-country running, Heilan Home is also involved in subdivided sports fields such as skiing and tennis. In 2021, Heilan Home acted as the agent for the Chinese region business of the Austrian sports brand HEAD. However, up to now, the proportion of the above businesses in revenue is still relatively low.

Biem.l.feng's outdoor story is also accelerating. In June this year, Biem.l.feng Group signed a contract with Snow Peak Japan Headquarters and South Korea's GAMSUNG Group in Guangzhou. Biem.l.feng will be responsible for the marketing, sales and distribution of Snow Peak in the Chinese market, covering Japanese-line apparel, camping equipment and Korean-line apparel, and has set up an independent business unit for this business.

Snow Peak is a high-end outdoor lifestyle brand founded in Japan in 1958. Its products cover outdoor equipment such as tents, cooking utensils, lamps and clothing, and is called "Hermès in the camping industry" by outdoor enthusiasts. Its brand positioning has always been quite high-end. Its star product titanium cup is priced from 189 yuan, while tent products often cost tens of thousands of yuan, and some tents are even priced as high as 15,999 yuan.

What Biem.l.feng values is the attraction of Snow Peak to young consumers. In order to get closer to more young consumer groups, it is also increasing the layout of online channels. In the first half of 2026, the company's e-commerce channel revenue was 433 million yuan, a year-on-year increase of 101.93%, almost doubling.

According to incomplete statistics from Time Finance, Snow Peak has opened 7 flagship stores in China, located in Shanghai Qiantang Taikoo Li, Guangzhou Julongwan Taikoo Li, Chongqing MixC, Xiamen MixC, Jinan Hang Lung Plaza, Taiyuan Tianmeishansen Outlet and Suzhou Jinji Lake respectively.

Behind the dense store openings is Biem.l.feng's high growth expectations for the brand. Xie Bingzheng, chairman of Biem.l.feng Group, set a 10-year sales target of 5 billion yuan for Snow Peak's China business, and Xie Yong, general manager, revealed in a media interview that the company plans to open 11 Snow Peak stores in China by the end of 2026.

Source: Unsplash

However, judging from the interim report and the current situation, the outdoor businesses of Heilan Home and Biem.l.feng are still in the initial stage and have not really made profits.

At the same time, there are many competitors in China's high-end outdoor track. Overseas brands such as "Arc'teryx, Descente and MAMMUT" have taken root in the market, and many small overseas high-end brands have entered China in the past three years.

Snow Peak needs to face the market competition of existing domestic brands, while HLA POW still needs to build users' awareness of the brand. For the outdoor market that has been verified by Descente to be profitable, brands represented by Heilan Home are still accumulating strength.

This article is from the WeChat official account "Time Finance APP" (ID: tf-app), written by Wu Jiamin and Li Qian, edited by Li Qian, and published with authorization from 36Kr.