İzmir Fashion Industry will Produce in Van and Export to the World

From Left to Right: Chairman of Aegean Apparel Exporters’ Association Burak Sertbaş, Van Governor Mehmet Emin Bilmez, Coordinator Chairman of Aegean Exporters’ Associations Jak Eskinazi and Eastern Anatolia Development Agency General Secretary Halil İbrahim Güray.

Currently, 3 companies which are members of the Aegean Apparel Exporters’ Association are producing in Van, and export to all world. While 3 member companies of Association already produce in Van and export to all over the world, increase in investments of İzmir apparel exporters in Van is aimed.

Aegean Exporters visited Van with a delegation also taking part the chairman of Aegean Apparel Exporters’ Association Burak Sertbaş on 18-19 August 2021. This time, Aegean Exporters hosted the delegation under the presidency of Van Governor Mehmet Emin Bilmez.

The delegation consisting of Van Governor Mehmet Emin Bilmez, Deputy Governor Furkan Duman, Muradiye District Governor Erkan Savar, Eastern Anatolia Development Agency General Secretary Halil İbrahim Güray and Textile City Operations Manager Selami Batmaz visited the Aegean Exporters’ Associations firstly according to their program.

Van Governor pointed out that the region where Van is located at a center of attraction and said that 63 percent of Van’s population is under the age of 30, the unemployment rate is high among the young population. Therefore, there is an effort for labor-intensive sectors to invest in Van Organized Industrial Zone.

Reminding that the enterprises that will invest in Van can benefit from the 6th Region incentives, Bilmez said, “We have reached employment of 5 thousand people in the textile sector in Van.

We allocated the fifth stage of Van Organized Industrial Zone for the textile industry. We have contracted with 11 companies. We have also prepared the infrastructure of 42 hectares of land for investors. We demand exporters from Izmir to invest in Van.”

“İzmir will increase the investment rate in Van”

Jak Eskinazi who is Coordinator Chairman of Aegean Exporters’ Associations gave information about export potential of the Aegean Region to the Van delegation. He said, “İzmir’s companies which will invest in Van will gain a competitive advantage. Currently, there are 3 companies that have invested in Van. However, there are other firms that have decided to invest in Van in near future. This number will increase in a short time.”

“Export targets will be achieved with İzmir-Van cooperation.”

Chairman of Aegean Apparel Exporters’ Association Burak Sertbaş specified that the export target of Turkey’s apparel industry is 19 billion US $, and for Aegean Region, this number is 1,5 billion US $. He stated that they were impressed by the approach of Van Governor Mehmet Emin Bilmez and other officials during their visit to Van in August.

He also remarked that, it was a good starting point for the increase in cooperation between İzmir and Van. Sertbaş said, “Van offered great opportunities to the apparel industry for Turkey to reach its export targets in the apparel industry.

“The Aegean Region is running for 30 billion dollars in exports”

Chairman of Aegean Apparel Exporters’ Association Burak Sertbaş, and General Secretary of Aegean Exporters’ Associations İ. Cumhur İşbırakmaz made a presentation to the Van delegation about Aegean Exporters’ Associations.

İ. Cumhur İşbırakmaz stated that there are 12 exporters’ unions, 7 of which operate in the agricultural sector and 5 in the industrial sectors, within the body of Aegean Exporters’ Associations. He said, “The average monthly export figure of the Aegean Region is 2.5 billion dollars, and they aim to reach an export level of 30 billion dollars at the end of 2021.”

In line with the program flow, the Van delegation under the presidency of Van Governor Mehmet Emin Bilmez visited İzmir Governor Yavuz Selim Köşger. On the second day of the program, the Van delegation visited the firms in the Buca Organized Industrial Zone.

After the meeting at the Regional Directorate of the zone, they visited the leading companies in the sector, such as Demoteks, Farbe and Narkonteks.