Rising costs and vanishing demand are hollowing out a once-dominant export industry.
Türkiye’s textile and ready-to-wear sector—long a pillar of industrial employment and exports—is sliding into what industry leaders now describe as its deepest crisis in more than two decades. Over 300 firms have sought bankruptcy protection this year, while more than 300,000 jobs have been lost in the past two years, signalling a structural breakdown rather than a cyclical slowdown.
Production has slowed sharply. In major hubs such as Istanbul, Denizli, Bursa and Gaziantep, factories are operating at just 30–40% of capacity, if at all. Exports, the sector’s traditional lifeline, remain under strain as weak European demand collides with rising energy, labour and financing costs. Combined textile and ready-to-wear exports reached $24.1bn by November—still substantial, but down 23.6% from the 2022 peak.
Competitiveness has eroded against Asian rivals such as China, Bangladesh and Vietnam, where lower wages and cheaper energy underpin pricing power. Istanbul’s historic trading districts—Merter, Osmanbey and Laleli—once magnets for buyers from Russia, Central Asia and Eastern Europe, now feature shuttered showrooms and dwindling footfall.
Labour dynamics have compounded the pressure. Syrian refugees, who filled labour-intensive roles for years, are returning home, while younger Turkish workers show little appetite for the sector. As margins evaporate, some firms are abandoning manufacturing altogether, pivoting into logistics or warehousing.
Industry leaders warn of cascading effects as bankruptcies ripple through supplier networks. Calls are growing for a reset: technological upgrading, a pivot to technical textiles, stronger branding and credible sustainability strategies. Without such a shift, Türkiye risks losing not just capacity—but its place in global textile value chains.
