Call for Added Value in Textile from Gaziantep: Renewal is a Must for Leap
Southeastern Anatolia Textile and Raw Materials Exporters’ Association (GATHIB) President Ahmet Fikret Kileci underlined the need for Turkey to increase value-added production in the textile sector. Emphasizing that the sector’s growth potential is high with the right planning and sustainability in the current conditions, Kileci said, “We must be renewed to move to the next class.”
“We must care about sustainability and redesign our business models accordingly”
Stating that the textile industry has an export of 33 billion dollars, Kileci pointed out that 11% of this export consists of raw material sales and 22% of ready-to-wear. Kileci said, “However, we hardly get 1 billion dollars of added value out of 33 billion dollars of exports. We are better in the textile industry than before but not at the point we want. Because the products of foreign companies are produced in Turkey. A factory is established with a small capital, as you do business, you get a volume, but not profit. This situation eats you up inside of yourself without realizing it. Therefore, we need to increase our own added value. For this, branding is important. We can export 5 billion dollars and get 2.5 billion dollars of added value. At this point, design is very critical.”
Emphasizing the branding efforts in Turkey he said; “I believe that big brands will emerge. It is necessary to be patient and struggle, it is not possible without fighting,” said Kileci, adding that the sector should make a serious calculation. Kileci continued his words as follows:
“We need to take stock of our balance sheet. We should also care about sustainability and redesign our business models accordingly. Otherwise, we’ll be out of the game. We need to identify the needs and move forward. The need for intermediate staff is very high, but everyone wants to be a textile engineer. We have a lot of smart work to do here. We need to give up what we have done and do new things. The number one way to do this is through design. It goes through sustainability and digitalization. We need to be able to get out of this business and transform it into a new system with minimum damage. If we don’t pay a certain price today, it may be too late tomorrow.”
Young Designers Awarded
GATHİB gave a total of 1.9 million TL to 10 people in the Doku Fabric Design Competition, organized for the 4th time this year to bring new designers to the sector. In the competition organized by GATHIB with the coordination of the Turkish Exporters Assembly (TIM) and the support of the Ministry of Commerce, young designers competed with fabrics from the patterns they designed. While Emir Nur Sakar was the winner in the woven fabric design category; Gizem Akyol took first place in the knitted fabric design category and Sümeyye Bulut took first place in the print fabric design category. The Sustainability Award was given to Tuğçe Kelemci. The winners of the competition also won a one-year scholarship abroad to cover all expenses.
