This March, two major developments occurred in Situan Town, the easternmost area of Fengxian District. One was the official launch of AstraZeneca's cell therapy commercial production and supply base in the Lingang Fengxian Park. The other was the start of construction on the Jingang Jiayuan Kindergarten project, which plans to accommodate 15 classes and is scheduled to open for enrollment next year. The former represents an upgrade in industrial capacity, while the latter is a much-anticipated public service project for local young residents.
In 2021, the entire Situan Town was incorporated into the Lingang New Area's industry-city integration zone. In recent years, industrial projects have been continuously introduced, and the young population has been steadily growing. For this area embracing national strategies, "growth" has become the central theme. Viewed through the lens of Situan Town, Fengxian has proposed establishing itself as a "key growth hub in southern Shanghai" during the 15th Five-Year Plan period. By better serving national strategies, fostering new productive forces, and reshaping its internal and external transportation networks, the district aims to turn growth signals into tangible outcomes.
According to Liu Ping, Party Secretary of Fengxian District, the essence of a "growth hub" is to become a super node for the flow of resources and factors. "Fengxian's goal is to both attract resources and release energy, truly supporting growth in southern Shanghai," he noted.
The "Situan Hub" is expected to unlock greater growth potential. Recently, the expansion and renovation of the G228 National Highway (Situan section) neared completion. The smooth flow of this north-south arterial road enhances Situan's role as a link between the core area of Lingang, Fengxian New City, and the coastal zone of Jinshan.
Once considered remote and economically weak, even requiring assistance from the urban center, Situan Town has undergone a remarkable transformation. Leveraging national strategic opportunities, the town has achieved significant industrial upgrades. During the 14th Five-Year Plan period, its average annual growth rate of industrial output value above the designated scale reached 27.2%. The new energy vehicle parts industry has formed a cluster, becoming a major growth engine for Fengxian.
However, compared to rapid industrial expansion, improvements in urban infrastructure and public services in Situan have lagged. In response, Fengxian's 15th Five-Year Plan emphasizes that while deepening industrial cooperation and coordination with the Lingang New Area, the Fengxian section of the industry-city integration zone should be developed into a multifunctional, high-quality urban space.
Wu Guohua, Deputy Mayor of Situan Town, mentioned that two additional industry-city integration zones are planned within the town. These will focus on providing residential facilities and urban community services, continuously enhancing the business environment and livability. Currently, construction has begun on the Jingang Jiayuan Kindergarten, and the renovation of the community health service center has been listed as a reserve project for this year.
A major change in eastern Fengxian during the 15th Five-Year Plan period will be the construction of the "Situan Hub." According to planning documents, the hub will eventually connect to the Shanghai-Hangzhou High-Speed Railway, Punan Line, Nanfeng Line, and Shanghai-Zhapu-Hangzhou Railway. It will serve multiple functions, including national and regional rail services as well as industrial freight, positioning it as an important regional comprehensive transportation hub in southern Shanghai.
Qu Lei, Director of the Fengxian District Development and Reform Commission, stated that the Situan Hub is not only a key support for Fengxian's eastward expansion into Lingang and absorption of industrial spillovers but also a critical node linking southern Shanghai with the Yangtze River Delta. Once completed, it will significantly promote the efficient flow of factors such as industry, talent, and capital, opening up greater growth space for Fengxian.
Fengxian is also redrawing its industrial map. While Situan Town benefits from its inclusion in the Lingang New Area, Fengxian also encompasses the new urban area, Jinhui, Zhuanghang, Xidu, Fengcheng, Haibay, and other towns. Each has distinct advantages—some are close to the urban center, others have deep industrial foundations—meaning the leverage points for growth vary.
To address this, Fengxian's 15th Five-Year Plan outlines a reconfigured regional map. By restructuring the district's urban system and industrial layout, each subdistrict or town will focus on specific sectors based on their comparative advantages, enabling more targeted cultivation of industrial clusters and ecosystems. For example, in late March, Zhuanghang Town partnered with the China Beauty Expo to host the first Lengjiang Yuxiang Cosmetics Festival. The event featured local beauty companies showcasing their latest achievements and attracted beauty enterprises from across the country for exchanges and cooperation.
As the core area of the "Oriental Beauty Valley," Zhuanghang hosts nearly one-third of Fengxian's beauty enterprises and industry leaders. For Zhuanghang, cosmetics represent a deeply rooted, highly aggregated, and competitive industrial track. This town, famous for its rapeseed flowers, hosted a high-level cosmetics industry exhibition for the first time. Local officials explained that the goal was clear: through targeted investment promotion, attract more enterprises to cluster and further strengthen the town’s competitive edge.
Liu Ping emphasized that while each town focuses on its specialized industrial track, the underlying logic of ecosystem cultivation, management approaches, and service standards remains consistent. "You do what you are best at, and I do what I am best at, but together we form Fengxian's industrial puzzle," he said.
For instance, Fengxian New City, as the regional core, will prioritize beautiful health and producer services. Jinhui Town, with its high concentration of food industries, will aim for premium and functional upgrades. Zhuanghang will focus on cosmetics while leveraging its ancient town renewal and natural scenery from countryside parks to host the Southern Shanghai Riverside Outdoor Music Festival.
Towns like Jinhui and Xidu, adjacent to Pudong and Minhang respectively, will actively connect with Zhangjiang and the "Big Zero Bay" sci-tech innovation resources to develop R&D transformation and innovation communities. Coastal areas near Hangzhou Bay, which host chemical zones and university districts, will build on the accumulated advantages of the "Three Zones, Two Towns" to develop new chemical materials and sports leisure, leveraging industry-education integration.
The restructuring of the system essentially adjusts the logic of resource allocation. Qu Lei noted that clarifying each area’s resource endowments and external opportunities ensures that projects land in the most suitable environments and limited resources are directed toward the most promising areas.
Innovation vitality is also driving growth momentum. As a key growth hub in southern Shanghai, Fengxian should also be fertile ground for enterprise development.
Recently, Shanghai Chuangyuan Cosmetics Co., Ltd., a Fengxian-based cosmetics OEM, held a technology strategy summit to showcase its explorations in digital-intelligent manufacturing. Over the past three years, the company invested billions of yuan to build a full-chain digital ecosystem covering R&D, production, and logistics services. It also established flexible magnetic suspension production lines, significantly improving the efficiency of cosmetics manufacturing.
As a "shadow factory" for international brands like L'Oréal and Estée Lauder, Chuangyuan may not be well-known to consumers but is recognized within the industry for its technical prowess. Through innovations in raw materials, processes, and manufacturing workflows, it generates nearly 2 billion yuan in annual output value with steady growth.
Chuangyuan exemplifies Fengxian's private enterprises. Its development logic offers a lesson for regional industrial cultivation: after identifying the right track, let innovation vitality become an enduring driver of growth.
Fengxian is one of Shanghai's most dynamic regions for private economy. It hosts a considerable number of small and medium-sized enterprises and supporting firms, such as cosmetics OEMs, new energy vehicle parts suppliers, and "hidden champions" in niche segments of new materials.
During the 15th Five-Year Plan period, Fengxian aims to transform this "supporting advantage" into an "innovation advantage." By fostering new productive forces, growth will not only be quantitative expansion but also qualitative improvement.
The visibility and effectiveness of the "growth hub" are continuously rising. In early March, Fengxian signed a district-level cooperation agreement with Jing'an District focusing on the cosmetics industry, exploring pathways for "R&D in Jing'an, manufacturing in Fengxian." For Fengxian, this not only creates incremental opportunities for local beauty industries but also means that its solid manufacturing foundation and production capacity advantages can, through higher-level industrial chain innovation and collaboration, further boost the development of Shanghai's cosmetics sector.
Fengxian's leadership believes that building the district into a key "growth hub" in southern Shanghai requires filling gaps, linking surrounding areas, and forming synergies—creating a virtuous cycle of resource aggregation and energy release, much like a hub. This endeavor demands time, patience, and unwavering commitment to a long-term blueprint.
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