Made in China

As they trawl southern China's gritty manufacturing towns, weary apparel buyers from companies like Polo Ralph Lauren and Liz Claiborne find an unexpected oasis at Building No. 15 of the Luen Thai clothing-manufacturing compound in Dongguan, Guangdong province. There, the visitors are greeted by a neatly uniformed, smiling receptionist who directs them to any of 337 guest roomsor they can stop by the library, fitness center, Internet caf, restaurant, cinema or one of the four zebra-skin-motif karaoke rooms. Belying its unimaginative name, Building No. 15 is actually a private, full-service hotel, opened last April by the clothing manufacturer to coddle its...

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