Textile Industry
Large Potential for Exports
The textile and clothing sector in Germany is one of the largest industry groups in the country. In 2006, Germany exported 20 billion Euros and imported 29 billion in textiles and clothing. Based on total revenue for the same year of 22 billion Euros and 122,000 employed in the sector, the textile branch represents one of the most important consumer products industries in Germany.
In 2006, the domestic production of textiles concentrated on clothing (30%), home textiles (30%), and technical textiles (40%). With this production, Germany is still one of the largest textile and clothing exporters worldwide with an export quota of 41.7%. At the same time, the country is also the second largest importer of textiles behind the United States and has become since the 1980?s an attractive export market for many textile exporting countries worldwide.
Foreign textile producers must optimize their entry into the German market in order to be successful. Key to a successful entry is to be able to make a realistic assessment of the situation and know how to obtain good quality information about the market and potential business partners within Germany. How can a small or mid-sized textile company find the right support in order to enter the German textile market successfully?
There exist a large amount of organizations whose main purpose is to support investors and importers enter and establish successfully in the country. The most important associations for the textile industry are:
The Organization of the German Textile and Fashion Industry is a group of regional organizations and trade associations. Here any interested importer can find information about all members of the Confederation, the European textile associations and other important organizations for the textile and clothing industry.
Textination is the official website for the entire textile industry in Germany. Its main goal is to act as a vertical platform in order to provide comprehensive information on the German textile and clothing industry and its retail market.
The Institute of German Textile Retail Traders (BTE), offers an extensive data file with contact information in the textile retail sector.
This site also offers the ?Trade Handbook for the Textile Retail Trade in Germany? which contains useful information on companies that cover 85% of the textile retail demand in the country. Detailed data on wholesalers and organizations specialized in the branch can be found in this useful directory.
In order to make sure that textile products are imported accordingly, it is necessary to obtain reliable information about the customs that apply. The German Customs Administration homepage allows every importer to access information on the amount of customs that have to be paid when importing their products. The website also offers an Information Center where first hand information is available.
Another good source for finding the correct guidelines for exporting textiles to Germany is the Market Access Database. This database contains information on tariffs, duties, labeling requirements, certificates of origin and more needed for the importing company.
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