Central Anatolian firm exports denim for famous jean labels


Orta Anadolu Ticaret ve Sanayi İşletmeleri TAŞ was founded by a group of entrepreneurs in Kayseri in 1953 with fully domestic capital and later turned into a family company over the years. Today, 64 years later, the textile company produces denim goods for over 300 "jean" companies, including world famous brands.

Orta Anadolu has entered the list of Turkey's top 200 exporting companies by reaching 100 million euros in annual exports. Employing more than 1,500 people, the company produces 55 million meters of fabric per year by combining fashion, technology and art in production facilities in Kayseri and Bahrain.

Erkan Ilgaz, the production director of the company, told Anadolu Agency (AA) that they are producing fabrics from different raw materials and natural fibers or their blends, as well comfort, stretch, powerstretch, bi-stretch, warp stretch, coated fabrics and fabrics with an alchemy process.Ilgaz said the exported products are generally soft and comfortable fabrics, noting that rapid changes are taking place all over the world depending on human needs. He said that the clothing industry is also affected by these changes, adding that people now prefer to dress in a way that they feel more comfortable in every environment and at any time of day.

"In this case, the demand for comfort and stretch products is increasing distinctly," he said. "For this reason, even though there is demand for fabrics from each product group, fabrics giving the feeling of comfort while wearing stand out."

Ilgaz said the export-oriented company has a turnover of 130 million euros annually, generating about 100 million euros from exports.

He said that they export about 80 percent of their production and most of their products, which are shipped to the domestic market, are being acquired to be exported. He stressed that they serve more than 300 brands in many parts of the world and export to more than 50 countries, including the U.S., Europe, Australia and Japan.

"We are heavily involved in high-end brands, often referred to as 'premium segments' in Europe and the U.S. We operate in Europe, especially in Italy, Germany and the Netherlands," he said.

Ilgaz added that since 2012, about 15 percent of total cotton production has been reserved for Better Cotton, a voluntary program designed to help millions of farmers around the world produce cotton under healthier conditions.

The company works with world renown Turkish jean giant Mavi, London-based textile retailer the Vintage Showroom, Copenhagen-based Samsoe, Italian mechanical sportswear brand SPIDI, Norwegian textile brand Jack & Jones, Colombian kids fashion brand Hermeco and the California-based brand Guess.