Istanbul Fashion Connection Shows Momentum in Turkey
While IFCO Istanbul Fashion Connection is held twice a year, industry trade show that was held just after the February’s massive earthquake, was marked by uncertainty amid the deaths, losses and factory damage in the wake of the devastating natural disaster.
The latest rendition last month at the Istanbul Expo Center was noticeably more upbeat.
More from Sourcing Journal
“It takes about four weeks to really know how the event went, and if orders are coming in,” Aysu Nazli Gültepe, owner, Sporttempt, a luxury sportswear brand, told Sourcing Journal, referring to what has fast become an important part of the sourcing landscape for the Republic of Türkiye, what Americans commonly call Turkey.
Her space at the event carried a simple slogan: “Stands out in the crowd.”
“While a lot of people walked through the stall, and inquired about prices, the real orders have been coming in these weeks after,” she said.
Other manufacturers agreed.
Many noted that although they participated in the previous session, the mood then was “too heavy to focus on business.” Last month, however, the focus on rebuilding offered a strong sense of unity—rebuilding not just the affected areas, but also the country’s businesses.
An IFCO spokesperson told Sourcing Journal that while Europe is the biggest export market for Turkey, new markets appear to be showing interest. “We had 180 visitors from Kazakhstan at IFCO; there were 134 from the United States, 1,021 from Russia, and 313 from middle Europe,” he said, adding that the show attracted 133 percent more visitors versus August last year.
”We also had a B2B meeting area where we held a matchmaking event with buyers and the companies. There were buyers from 70 countries for this, up from 30 countries in February,” the rep added.
Described as the “biggest ready-to-wear and fashion fair in Europe,” the event filled up 375,000 square feet. Mustafa Gültepe, president of the Turkish Exporters Assembly, or TİM, said that plans were “to spur growth for the industry which saw a spike in revenue over Covid, and then has been facing difficult times.”
“Any step to be taken towards creating high added value and branding will have a positive impact on our exports. We are looking for ways to increase our market diversity. And of course, we need to further strengthen the perception of Made in Türkiye,” Gültepe added.
He emphasized the solidarity felt throughout the industry. “Here in these halls last February we presented the biggest ready-to-wear and fashion fair in Europe. No success is achieved by accident,” Gültepe said. “There is a great vision, sectoral solidarity, consultation and a common mind behind this success. There is an understanding that says ‘we’, not ‘I.’”
Buyers in Istanbul said that they were looking at the event for better sourcing, too. International buyers at IFCO included Inditex (Spain), PDS (UK), Huesken (Germany), Sainbury’s (UK), Walmart (USA), Quicksilver (USA), Teddy Fresh (USA), Wilbo (USA), About You (USA), Fred David (Canada), Cihuah (Mexico), Andiamo (Peru), Pandawa (Columbia), Castro (Israel), Golf&Co (Israel), 6th Street (UAE), Apparel Group (UAE), Safari Group (UAE), Ria Miranda (Indonesia), Hi Style (Malaysia), Zalora (Malaysia), Musinsa (South Korea) and Ackermans (South Africa), among others.
Turkish designers are also gaining visibility, and many of the nation’s top names were at the show including Arzu Kaprol, Ceren Ocak, Çiğdem Akın, Essin Barış, Emre Erdemoğlu, Mehmet Emiroğlu, Meltem Özbek, Mert Erkan, Murat Aytulum, Nejla Güvenç, Özlem Erkan, Selin Küçüksöz, Seydullah Yılmaz, Tuba Ergin and Yakup Biçer.
Due to demand, the stalls were 20 percent more expensive in August than the previous season and are expected to cost about 50 percent more for the next IFCO event to be held Feb. 7-10, 2024.
“It may seem an increase but not a real increase, due to inflation the cost of taking a stall will actually be lower in dollar terms. For what is the biggest such fair in Europe, it may well be the cheapest,” an IFCO representative said.
