According to Google Trends data, the global search popularity of the keywords "Qipao" and "Cheongsam" has shown a cyclical upward trend over the past five years, with an overall steady increase. January and February are the peak search months, corresponding to the Spring Festival and Chinese New Year. This period also coincides with the wedding season in Europe and America, with more brides including qipao in their wedding attire options when searching for "Chinese Wedding Dress," further boosting search volume.
Meanwhile, May and September also see significant secondary search peaks, closely related to cultural activities at overseas universities, prom season, and autumn weddings. The qipao is gradually moving from a traditional festive dress to a more widespread range of everyday and fashionable occasions. Keyword trends have also evolved from "Chinese dress" to "Modern Qipao," "Shanghai Style Dress," and "Chinese Wedding Dress," indicating that consumer interest is shifting from cultural curiosity to specific purchasing needs.
On social media platforms like TikTok and Instagram, videos featuring #Qipao and #Cheongsam have garnered over 100 million views, especially among young Americans. The cheongsam, with its oriental design and high-end quality, has become a key representative of the "Vintage Asian Style" trend.
Cross-border sellers are seeing a new blue ocean in Chinese-style apparel.
The popularity of cheongsams overseas is not only reflected in search and social media discussions, but also directly in sales. According to data released by eMarketer, US consumer spending on cross-border e-commerce apparel exceeded $17 billion in 2024, with "cultural fashion" being one of the fastest-growing sub-sectors.
For Chinese sellers, this means a full-chain opportunity from design innovation and product development to local fulfillment. Whether it's high-end cheongsams emphasizing "retro oriental beauty" or "modified Qipao" targeting younger consumers, both have sustainable growth potential. However, to gain a foothold in the US market, relying solely on direct shipping from China is far from enough; the establishment of overseas warehouses has become a crucial factor influencing repurchase rates and brand experience.
From product selection to delivery, US overseas warehouses are key to competitiveness.
Cross-border sales of cheongsam products are highly seasonal and influenced by holiday periods. If logistics are delayed or returns and exchanges are inconvenient, sales opportunities can easily be missed.
Taking the US as an example, return rates for wedding and holiday apparel on Amazon are generally higher than for everyday clothing. Semi-managed and local shipping mechanisms on platforms like TikTok Shop and SHEIN are becoming a new trend. Sellers who want to improve their store ratings and conversion rates must rely on reliable US local warehouses to achieve efficient dropshipping and replenishment responses.
U-Speed US overseas warehouse – Helping Cheongsam Cross-Border Easier
Addressing the pain points of short sales cycles and complex fulfillment processes for Chinese sellers in the US, U-Speed has established two major overseas warehouses in the East and West Coasts, forming a nationwide warehousing and distribution network. As an officially certified semi-managed warehouse for Temu/SHEIN, U-Speed US overseas warehouses can accept general goods and pure electronic products, meeting the shipping needs of different types of apparel sellers.
The warehouse covers an area of 20,000 square meters and is equipped with light and heavy-duty shelving, forklifts, a WMS warehouse management system, PDAs, 24-hour monitoring, and comprehensive fire-fighting facilities. It can handle up to 100,000 parcels per day. Whether it's bulk shipping of in-stock cheongsams or small-batch delivery of new products during the testing phase, it can handle everything efficiently.
U-Speed's dropshipping system is fully integrated with major cross-border platforms such as TEMU, TikTok, SHEIN, and AE. Sellers can push orders through the system, automatically generating shipping instructions, significantly improving operational efficiency.
Intelligent management and meticulous operations ensure timeliness and accuracy.
U-Speed's self-developed WMS warehouse management system can achieve multi-platform API integration, real-time order synchronization, and transparent visibility of inventory and inbound/outbound data. The warehouse is managed by a Chinese team, and operations follow strict SOP procedures, resulting in a high on-time outbound rate.
Furthermore, the warehouse implements meticulous SKU zoning management, dynamically dividing areas based on shipping frequency and product attributes, effectively improving turnover efficiency. For apparel sellers, especially in the crucial return and relabeling process, U-Speed can complete the operation and data upload within 48 hours, providing secondary sales support and minimizing losses.
Integrated First-Leg Shipping and Warehousing Makes Cross-Border Easier
In addition to in-warehouse operations, U-Speed offers a one-stop first-leg warehousing and distribution service from domestic pickup to last-mile delivery in the US, striking a balance between timeliness, cost, and stability. Sellers can achieve an efficient "domestic packaging and shipping, local distribution in the US" chain through U-Speed, reducing intermediate links and transportation costs.
This integrated first-leg shipping and warehousing service model is particularly suitable for small and medium-sized sellers on platforms like TikTok and Temu, allowing them to manage inventory more flexibly, respond quickly to market demands, and seize opportunities during the peak product cycle.
The cheongsam is becoming a global representative of "Chinese style fashion," and an efficient fulfillment system is key to the brand's continued success. In today's increasingly competitive cross-border e-commerce market, U-Speed's US overseas warehouses, with their warehousing network covering the East and West coasts of the US, their proprietary WMS system, and dropshipping capabilities, provide Chinese apparel sellers with a complete end-to-end solution from initial shipment to warehousing and distribution, ensuring that every cheongsam can reach consumers faster, more reliably, and more beautifully.
