The sankeng (Chinese: 三坑; pinyin: Sānkēng; lit. 'Three traps') is a Chinese subculture slang for three types of fashion, Japanese school uniforms, hanfu and Lolita fashion, which were called "traps" due to the addiction of Chinese Gen Z consumers to them. Women within the subculture are called "Sankeng Girl" (Chinese: 三坑少女; pinyin: Sānkēng shàonǚ) or "Three Bankrupt Sisters" (Chinese: 破产三姐妹; pinyin: Pòchǎn Sānjiěmèi).[1][2][3]
Description
Sankeng clothing are called "traps" due to their high prices and rapidly changing trends, as well as the high cost needed to research them.[4] ACGN fans aged 12 to 35 are the primary demographic of this subculture.[5] In a survey in 2021, 21.7% of respondents stated that they are attracted to relevant ACGN cultures, prolonging their retention for passion.[6]
Sankeng physical stores exhibits slow and dispersed development. An article in The Paper thought that Japanese school uniform, hanfu and Lolita fashion stores cannot be operated in the same way, increasing the difficulty of managing sankeng stores.[7]
Terminology
The sankeng girls are categorized into "single trap", "double traps", and "three traps" based on their preferences for these types of clothes, and consumers who do not know any types of clothing from sankeng are referred to as "earthmen".[8] Besides, every clothing in sankeng has its own terminology, such as the term "dog short", "honor student" and "furyō" being used to describe the length of JK uniform skirts, and "jsk" (jumper skirt) and "op" (one piece) referring to sleeveless and sleeveless Lolita dresses respectively.[9]
Influence
In the 2020s, the sankeng fashion is one of the most popular street fashions in China.[8] According to a report by Guotai Junan Securities, sankeng clothing sales has exceeded 20 billion yuan in 2020, and it predicts that sales will reach 126.6 billion yuan by 2025.[10] LeadLeo Research Institute predicted the total market size of the "sankeng" industry is expected to reach 103.5 billion yuan by 2025.[9]
References
- ^ Cheng Luyang (2021-02-06). "你对"三坑"少女的力量一无所知". The Economic Observer (in Chinese (China)). Archived from the original on 2021-02-22. Retrieved 2021-03-28.
- ^ "Chinese Consumers' Demand for Hanfu, JK Uniforms and Lolita Costumes Has Created a 10 Billion RMB Market". China Marketing Insights. 2021-04-12.
- ^ "JK汉服Lolita，"三坑少女"这个冬天有点冷". The Paper (in Chinese (China)). 2021-11-12.
- ^ Zhou Fangying (2021-11-30). "什么是"三坑"？为什么带上这俩字的集合店能屡获投资？". Jiemian News (in Chinese (China)).
- ^ "各店·三坑浮力社国风盛典开启95后消费市场". China National Radio (in Chinese (China)). 2020-12-28.
- ^ "资本争相入局，要把"三坑"服饰做成ZARA？". The Paper (in Chinese (China)). 2021-11-11.
- ^ "百亿市场不再圈地自萌，"三坑少女"生意该选谁？". The Paper (in Chinese (China)). 2021-04-29.
- ^ a b Zhou Jie (2020-07-15). "把自我穿在身上，情愿沉"三坑"！". Xinmin Weekly (in Chinese (China)).
- ^ a b ""破产女孩"撑起千亿级三坑市场". Jiemian News (in Chinese (China)). 2021-09-18.
- ^ "沉迷于"三坑"的她们，正在撑起一个千亿级市场". Xinhua Daily (in Chinese (China)). 2022-03-20.