The Turkish apparel industry has been rapidly losing the strong position it has maintained in global trade for many years. Despite being one of the world’s largest supply chains, Türkiye was announced as the only country whose exports contracted in the first half of 2025, while world trade was growing. At the press conference held by the Turkish Clothing Manufacturers’ Association (TGSD) ahead of the 18th Istanbul Apparel Conference to be organized in October, data showing that the sector has reached a historical breaking point were shared. During the meeting, which was attended by TGSD Co-Chairs Toygar Narbay and Dr. Ümit Özüren, TGSD Economic Advisor Dr. Can Fuat Gürlesel, and TGSD Vice President Servet Karaalioğlu, the steps that need to be taken to regain competitiveness were also emphasized.
“If this goes on, it will be our country that loses”
The Turkish apparel industry, the world’s second-largest supply chain and the fifth-largest manufacturer, entered a historical decline process as a result of the loss of competitiveness it started to face rapidly after 2022. Stating that the sector has reached a breaking point after its share in global apparel trade fell below 3% for the first time in 35 years, and its share in its main market, the European Union, dropped below 5% for the first time in 30 years, TGSD President Toygar Narbay said: “In the first half of this year, Türkiye was the only country whose exports declined while global apparel trade grew. We are in a period where importing is cheaper than producing domestically, employment losses cannot be stopped, and companies have almost completely lost their equity capital. If our demands, which will enable the sector to recover, are not met, we foresee that relocations to countries with more favorable production and competition conditions, as well as the ongoing investments in these regions, will increase further. If this goes on, it will be our country that loses.”
“The disinflation program affected both exports and domestic sales”
Recalling that after the sharp decline in global apparel exports in 2023, the sector started to recover as of last year, while the opposite happened in Türkiye, Narbay said: “Especially the rising costs caused by the high-interest–suppressed exchange rate policy implemented to fight inflation led us to lose competitiveness. On top of this, our significant losses in war zones accelerated the decline of Turkish apparel exports. In the first half of this year, while global apparel exports rose by 6% compared to the same period last year, and the shares of our competitors such as Bangladesh and Vietnam increased by more than 10%, our exports fell by 6.5%. In fact, we were the only country whose exports decreased. The Turkish apparel industry’s share in global apparel trade first exceeded 3% in 1990. Exactly 35 years later, as of June 2025, it fell below this threshold, declining to 2.96%. Yet over the last 15 years, our average share was 3.67%.”
Answering our question, Narbay added that they expect the sector to regain a positive outlook in 2027.
Stating that the data are not encouraging at all, Ümit Özüren emphasized that a situation different from global trends has been experienced and that the sector has diverged negatively in the last two years. Özüren underlined that the sector needs to be supported in the short term.
Servet Karaalioğlu also provided information about the Istanbul Fashion Conference to be held on October 7–8 and its slogan “Compass for a New Order.”