The Turkish textile industry hopes forge lucrative partnerships with globally recognised brands in a bid to hit the ground running in the post-Covid era.
“The imminent recovery of international trade offer”s enormous opportunities for cooperation between Turkish textiles firms and foreign partners,” Ahmet Öksüz, president of the Istanbul Textile and Raw Materials Exporters Association, said.
“We are going through times that global brands and especially technical textile companies need more and more cooperation. By establishing win-win relationships, we wish to turn pandemic era into an era of opportunities,” he added. “Our domestic textile sector boasts a number of top-notch businesses that have already proven themselves in the global marketplace.”
According to Öksüz, considering the upward momentum at the field of technical textiles in recent years the sector’s impressive production capacity along with Turkey’s strategic position between Europe and Asia, “offer the chance for potential partnerships that could bring tremendous benefits to all stakeholders and will soon be reflected in our trade figures.”
The world’s fifth largest supplier of textiles, Turkey expects to export roughly $12 billion USD worth of textiles, reaching to $30 billion USD in 2021 including the apparel industry. The sector currently employs more than one million skilled laborers.
“It’s a highly dynamic sector, characterised by a spirit of innovation and entrepreneurship,” Öksüz says. Our deeply rooted and integrated textile businesses with an industry renewing itself every passing day supported by our R&D and innovation capacity reveals the cutting-edge infrastructure and dynamism of the industry. Considering the know-how, ease of access to raw materials and logistical advantages of our country, partnerships to be made will not only expand our physical investments but also strengthen the close relations between our countries.
Thanks to a groundbreaking Customs Union agreement between Turkey and the European Union that came into effect in 1996, the Turkish textile industry has been fully compliant with EU standards and norms.
“The agreement is a concrete example of the sector’s ability to quickly adapt to change, and we fully comply with all EU standards, including the European Green Deal,” Öksüz says. “With a view to contributing to a greener world, we have reduced carbon emissions at all our facilities, and continue to invest in green infrastructure.”
With a post-Covid recovery around the corner, he adds, the sector is looking forward to reaching its full potential by taking advantage of its ability to change “with the cooperation of global partners who share these ideals.”
