Regional brands are being promoted by industrial associations and also government organisations for products produced in a particular cluster. Thus, there is a geographical Indication (GI) recognition for some products such as ‘Made in Tirupur’ brand for garments etc. This helps facilitate direct export to the retailer or manufacturer abroad and create a brand value for the products in the particular area.

The idea of a common market place in e-commerce portals so that the products made in that cluster could be sold there, has also been debated by some industry associations. However, only some products have benefitted from this move. Manufacturers need to start looking at joint initiatives to create geography-specific brands, for this move to work better. The clusters have a large number of small and medium-scale units. Thus, if they have a common brand or a common market place, they would be able to offer higher volume of products for sale.

Nearly 50 to 60 per cent exports are from the manufacturer to retailer in Tirupur and there are different models of exports among the spinning mills. Some mills have selling agents in abroad, others sell to a trader and still others have long-term tie-ups directly with overseas manufacturers who offer some added benefit.