Turkish Apparel Expanding in the US Market
Thirteen Turkish apparel companies will showcase their latest collections at Premiere Vision Manufacturing New York on July 14–15, positioning themselves for a bigger slice of a US clothing import market valued at roughly $100 billion a year.
A strategic opening in New York
EHKİB president Cağlar Bağcı framed the New York fair as a direct response to shifts in US import policy, particularly the elevated duties imposed on Chinese garments. Recent changes, he noted, are rewriting global supply chains, and Turkish firms intend to occupy the space vacated by Chinese exporters.
The numbers behind the shift are significant. Chinese apparel exports to the United States are projected to decline by about a third by 2025, falling from $27.7 billion to roughly $19 billion as tariffs bite. Turkey has already begun capturing a share of that demand: industry data shows Turkish apparel exports to the US rose by 6 percent in the first half of 2023, reaching approximately $420 million.
A wider contest than Ankara alone
Vietnam and Cambodia have moved at least as aggressively, both roughly doubling their apparel exports to the US over the same period. The combined surge from these three countries — Turkey, Vietnam, Cambodia — is redrawing the map of who supplies America's wardrobe, forcing mid-sized exporters to differentiate on grounds other than price.
Turkish brands are leaning into organic fabrics, ethical manufacturing, transparent supply chains, and shorter lead times. Several have already gained traction with US buyers by aligning production practices with the sustainability values that increasingly shape American consumer choices.
What to watch next
The fair's outcome will offer an early signal of whether Turkish firms can convert trade-fair visibility into lasting order books. For competing manufacturing hubs in South and Southeast Asia, the relevant question is whether similar differentiation — on speed, sustainability, and supply-chain transparency — can be deployed quickly enough to defend existing ground as new competitors crowd the field. The fair opens July 14.