Color Service: We Are Hopeful for 2021, Expecting Growth Trend
Göksun Özensoy, Color Service Marketing Manager
All countries and sectors are going through a troublesome period due to the coronavirus pandemic that has been going on for more than a year. Many businesses that had a break in their manufacturing for a while resumed their activities after the 3rd quarter of 2020. In this period, there were also companies that did not interrupt their production even if their orders decreased. One of such companies was Color Service, which provides services in textile dyehouse automation. The company, which compensates for its losses in the textile sector with its jobs in other sectors, has managed to maintain its overall turnover in 2020 as well.
Color Service Marketing Manager Göksun Özensoy, whom we interviewed for ‘‘Italy Special Issue’’, made statements about the 2021 plans and expectations of the company. Özensoy said, ‘‘We have planned our marketing strategy for this year to have fewer travels. However, we are hopeful for 2021. We are expecting to observe a growth trend again.’’
Firstly, the whole world has been going through a very troubled period for about 1 year due to the coronavirus pandemic outbreak. How was 2020 for Color Service? What kind of a road map did you determine as a company in order to minimize the effects of the pandemic?
The year 2020 resulted in a slight decrease in turnover for us, but our production did not stop. We compensated for the losses in the textile industry with jobs that we carried out in other sectors. Our overall turnover remained approximately the same compared to last year. Our growth rate, which has been 20-25 percent every year for the last 4 years, has stopped. We have planned our marketing strategy for this year with less travel. However, we are hopeful for 2021. We are expecting to observe a growth trend again.
In the post-pandemic period, there will be some changes in the products, production models, and supply points required in the textile industry. What kind of changes do you think will happen for the sector? What actions should companies take to keep up with these changes?
In fact, textile manufacturing continues intensely due to online shopping. However, textile production is slowly diminishing in developing countries. Because buyers do not want to visit these countries for product and order tracking. Currently, we are experiencing a brighter era for Europe and Turkey. Similarly, there is an increasing trend in Latin America. This situation works for us when you consider the need for automation. Because in developed countries, labor is quite valuable and they desire to continue textile manufacturing through automation.
As Color Service, what kind of preparations do you make for the post-pandemic period? Will there be a variety in your company’s products or changes in your production models?
We made changes in the commissioning processes of our machines. We enabled regional agencies to strengthen their technical infrastructure. Now we can commission with remote support. As you know, marketing activities are now carried out online as much as possible. There is no change in the product variety, but some of our suppliers suffered from economic problems, so we also started to manufacture some of the productions that we export within our own facility. In 2019, we enlarged our production facility by 50 percent. Our aim was to speed up the production process, but instead, we started to produce outside manufacturing in-house. I think we are very lucky in this regard; the fact that we enlarged the facility has been very favorable for us.
‘‘If the Pandemic Managed Wisely, Turkey Can Be an Important Player’’
Turkey proved that it is one of the most important suppliers for Europe, particularly in this period. How do you assess the importance of Turkey in the global textile sector? Do you have any new projects for Turkey?
Currently, the position of Turkey is better than before. We can even benefit from the EU-UK rift created by Brexit. We have observed the fruits of this with the increase of investments in Turkey through Color Service over the last few months. I think this trend will continue in 2021. If the pandemic is managed wisely, Turkey can be an important player.
The effects of the pandemic seem to continue in the first months of 2021. As Color Service, what are your expectations and goals in 2021? Do you have new investment plans? Do you have new product development studies?
We do not have special marketing plans for Turkey. However, we are hopeful about ITM 2021. The share of Turkey in the total revenue of Color Service is bound to increase this year. However, we can quickly transfer our resources from one country to another, since we operate across the world. From our perspective, Turkey will take the place of other markets this year.
Interview: Dilek HAYIRLI
