HANGZHOU - A significant increase in European orders for down products from factories in East China's Zhejiang province since late January has created an opportunity for the local industry's revival.

The especially harsh European winter is responsible for the increased demand for down products, bringing greater profits for businesses in the city of Xiaoshan, a major manufacturing center for down products.

"Our company received rush orders from Italy in late January and they were willing to pay air freight charges," said Zheng Fangli, marketing manager of Rongda Down Products Co., Ltd.

However, the orders were received just as the Chinese Spring Festival holiday was ending, with hundreds of thousands of migrant workers remaining in their hometowns.

"To guarantee delivery, we had to call workers located around the country and ask them to return to the factory to work," Zheng said.

The company promised to pay round-trip transportation costs for the workers. Other down companies have offered salary bonuses to encourage their workers to come back early.

The province's down companies have dealt with dim export prospects since 2009, largely because of the global economic downturn. Official data showed that China's exports in January dropped 0.5 percent year-on-year.

However, down factories in Zhejiang have received significantly larger export orders than in months past. Some companies have had to cancel orders due to a lack of labor, while others have had to wait for their factories and logistics companies to go back into operation following the Spring Festival holiday.