On January 18, Beijing Xiushuijie Market held an awarding ceremony for IPR protection.  Senior officials from Beijing Administration for Industry and Commerce, Beijing Intellectual Property Office and Chaoyang District as well as Paul Ranjard, Chair of the IPR Working Group, European Chamber of Commerce awarded the shop owners with good business practice in terms of IPR. 

Ranjard affirmed Xiushuijie's changes and progresses in IPR protection, recognizing its significance as an abstract of China's improvement in IPR protection.

"Xiushuijie has just begun tasting the flavor of IPR protection," said Wang Zili, General manager of Xiushuijie Garment Market Company.  In 2006, Xiushuijie adopted several measures in making the market more IPR-friendly, drafting its own IPR development strategy, establishing a specific IPR protection fund of 30 million RMB and encouraging its shops to carry more domestic brands including prestigious traditional brands and licensed brands. 

Forty shops were awarded in four equally-divided categories, Most Culturally Significant, Most Fashionable, Best in Dealing Licensed Products and Most Innovative.