Turkish Fashion Industry Steps Up

Turkish fashion industry, which experienced a 9% export decline in 2023, is launching a marketing offensive in 2024 starting from its strongest market, Germany, to halt the downturn in exports. Aegean Ready-Made Garment and Apparel Exporters Association is organizing a national participation of 10 companies at the Munich Fabric Start the Source Fair, which will take place in Germany on 23-25 January 2024.

Germany's apparel imports fell 11.5%

Turkish Exporters Assembly Sectors Council Member and Aegean Ready-Made Garment and Apparel Exporters Association Chairman Burak Sertbaş drew attention to the fact that Turkey's decline in apparel exports and Germany's decline in apparel imports are in line with each other. Sertbaş stated, "While Germany imported USD 52 billion worth of ready-made garment products in 2022, its imports in 2023 decreased to USD 46 billion with a contraction of 11.5%. Our objective is to maintain our position in the German market despite the contraction, and at the Munich Fabric Start the Source Fair we will present our spring-summer collections for 2025 to the purchasing managers of retail chains over a three-day period." Noting that the Turkish ready-made garment sector was the third most exporting sector in 2023 with an export performance of USD 19 billion 253 million despite all adverse conditions, Sertbaş said they were hopeful about the second half of 2024, contingent on the global economic recession subsiding, wars ending, high inflation in Turkey being brought under control, and pressure on exchange rates being lifted.

"We are planning 4 fairs and 1 buying delegation"

Aegean Ready-Made Garment and Apparel Exporters Association Management Board Member and External Market Strategies Development Committee Chairman Tala Uğuz stated that EHKİB will organize national participation in 4 fairs in Germany and France in 2024 to halt the erosion in exports and resume growth, and will bring together Italian buyers and Turkish exporters at a Buying Delegation Organization in Izmir. Uğuz, who stated that as a Turkish fashion industry they exported USD 3 billion to Germany in 2023, said, "The exports from EHKİB to Germany amounted to USD 300 million. Germany is our largest export market both nationwide and in the Aegean Region. We are the third largest supplier in Germany's apparel imports. When economies strengthen and demand is created, we will secure our place at the fair in Germany to be a preferred supplier to importers." The Aegean Ready-Made Garment and Apparel Exporters Association will continue marketing activities with the PV Paris Fair to be held in France in February. EHKİB will organize Turkey National Participation with 26 companies at the PV Paris Fair.