Henrik, Prince Consort of Denmark, meets with Tsinghua students and reviews their graduate works during Danish Queen Margrethe II's recent visit to China. Provided to China Daily

Yang Chen has studied fur design for two years at the Tsinghua Kopenhagen Studio, where she learns from Danish experts and uses Danish fur.

Her graduate work, a jacket strung with blue pieces of mink, won the top prize at the graduate runway show. She was rewarded with a trip to Denmark, where she spent a week taking pointers from the top fur designers in the world. "I want to learn their skills and more importantly their innovative spirit," Yang says.

Designers have been a major force in making Denmark the center of the global fur industry. And now, with help from the country, the same thing is happening at Tsinghua Kopenhagen Studio.

During Danish Queen Margrethe II's recent visit to China, Henrik, Prince Consort of Denmark, met with Tsinghua students, reviewed their graduate works and received a gift designed by the students.

The students' graduate works have one ingredient in common: mink from Kopenhagen Fur, a leading provider and the largest fur auction house in the world.

"Every time I see the graduate work, I'm surprised by their design concept and handicraft. This is the future of our industry. These are the products that customers will buy," says Cui Yiyun, general manager of the company's China office.

Sponsored by Kopenhagen Fur, the studio aims to cultivate fur designers and promote sustainable development in the industry in China. It is the only professional fur studio at Chinese academies, offering design courses taught by Tsinghua professors and experts from Denmark.

"It is a place for the free mind. Here we can try anything we want. We have the best machinery and top-quality material. Nothing would have been possible in fur design without the right material," Yang says.

The studio has trained more than 100 students, whose works have been exhibited during China Fashion Week. It also offers MBA courses for fur corporation leaders, which could bring more opportunities to the Chinese market, says Kenneth Loberg, chief business and marketing officer of the company.

The number of Asian clients in the fur industry has risen sharply in the last decade, and Loberg says "it's important for both the corporation and the fur industry to have this kind of cooperation. It paves the way for the future and educates the common staff".

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