Turkey is one of two single countries that offer a clothing supply chain extending from fiber to end product, and it aims to achieve its goal of doubling clothing exports to the USA and Europe by using this advantage together with green transformation. While delivering a speech at the Green Transformation Summit organized by the Istanbul Clothing Exporters Association (IHKİB), President Mustafa Gültepe said that Turkey reached the implementation stage of the 13 of 40 actions which incorporated in the green transformation map determined in line with the EU Green Deal last year.
The Quest to Double Turkey's Exports
While stating that Turkey constitutes 3.5% of world ready-made clothing exports, Mustafa Gültepe stated that while realizing 60% of their exports to the European Union, the passage which lead to the path to doubling exports passes through the EU and the USA, and said that when adding other European countries and the USA, 75% of exports are conducted to these markets.
While emphasizing on the long-standing collaborations with US and European based brands, Gültepe said that Turkey is one of the few countries where all of the components from fiber to the end product can be offered domestically, with their awareness on the urgency to add sustainability into their existing capabilities, and shared personal belief on the green transformation process of Turkey to turn into an opportunity which comes with the adoption of the (Partnership Chain Approach) approach.
Competitiveness and Sustainability
Gültepe said, "Instead of being just a link in the supply chain, we want to be an indispensable part of the partnership chain" and added that at this point, compliance criteria, competitiveness and sustainability come to the fore and emphasized on the need for being environmental, social and managerially appropriate and competitive in terms of price performance, but that quality has a value and cost, and further emphasized on the brands working with for many years should not focus only on price, and that their collaborations should be on a sustainable basis.
While speaking at the event attended by İHKİB, TİM, relevant Ministry representatives, international fund providers, brands and purchasing groups, Euratex General Director Dirk Vantyghem explained the sustainability strategy of the ready-made clothing industry and its expectations from the EU while Bahar Güçlü, Deputy for International Agreements at the Ministry of Commerce and Deputy Director General for EU Affairs, talked about the reflections of the legal regulations concerning the Green Deal in Turkey.
İTKİB Deputy Secretary General Özlem Güneş emphasized on the Green Deal which constitutes an important opportunity for the Turkish ready-made clothing industry and gave information about the work carried out by İHKİB regarding the compliance process to the Green Deal.
