Turkish suppliers want to be recognised not only for their manufacturing but also for their in-house brands.

Turkey is well known for near-shore manufacturing capabilities that are of high quality, The European Union, UK, US, and the Middle East and Gulf countries are Turkey’s biggest clothing export markets. Europe accounts for 65 per cent of Turkey’s clothing exports. Other big customers are Germany, Spain, the Netherlands, France and the US. Turkey’s proximity to Europe means that retailers and brands receive orders in less time than locations such as Bangladesh and China. The average Turkish lead time is between 45 and 60 days.

By contrast, clothing orders from Bangladesh can take between 90 and 120 days. Most suppliers in Turkey have their own design team. Investments in digitalisation have helped to reduce travel, cost of making samples and enabled getting approvals online.

Turkey’s factories are used by retail giants including Next, Inditex and H&M. The post-Brexit trade deal struck in 2020 between the UK and Turkey offers favourable terms. Among Turkey’s garment and textile exports are knitted and crocheted clothes and accessories, non-knitted apparel and accessories, carpets, mats, matting, and tapestries and textile goods. However Turkey is facing a high rate of inflation.