ISTANBUL- “Our target is to make Istanbul one of the top five world fashion capitals, alongside Paris, Milan, New York and London,” Hikmet Tanriverdi told AFP in an interview here.
The new chairman of ITKIB, the body representing manufacturers and designers, is determined to achieve that ambition by 2023, when Turkey celebrates the 100th anniversary of the birth of the Turkish republic.
Tanriverdi, who took up his job a year ago, is the prime mover behind the just-ended Istanbul Fashion Days, the first time leading Turkish labels and designers have been brought under one roof for three days of catwalk shows and trade fair stands.
Given that the textile and clothing sector is a top exporter for Turkey, the idea of trying to forge a place for Istanbul on the notoriously tight global fashion calendar had been mooted for years, Tanriverdi says, and he wanted to be the man who made it happen.
With Istanbul designated the European capital of culture for 2010, the decision was taken to go-ahead in August last year.
Nobody saw the global recession just around the corner. When it bit, “we lost a lot of blood,” Tanriverdi admits.
But he still insists “the timing was right. We know there are fashion weeks all over the world. Turkey has been trying to organise its own fashion week for 10 years.”
Although there were few gaps on the calendar, Istanbul has squeezed in just ahead of Barcelona, before major player New York in September unveils its ready-to-wear lines for next spring-summer.
A sizeable contingent of towards 100 international press, buyers and trend spotters from as far afield as Japan, Brazil and Saudi Arabia turned up for the debut event held on the campus of Istanbul’s technical college.
“Next year we will hold it twice, in February and August,” Tanriverdi says, emphasising that Istanbul Fashion Days is intended to promote Turkey’s brand image as a whole, not individual brands.
Over the past 20 years Turkey has established its reputation as a reliable manufacturer for international labels including Gap and Dolce & Gabbana but is now pinning its hopes on home-grown talent, a dynamic young generation of designers with creativity to help it remain competitive.
“We are known all over the world as a producer. We also want to be known for our design.
“We are not able to compete with China or the far Eastern countries on price. We know that. Our manufacturing industry is so developed - their labour market is so much cheaper.”
“We have to exploit our advantages. Like our location: we are so much nearer to Europe.” Eighty percent of Turkey’s textiles and apparel are exported to Europe.
“Turkey has the right infrastructure. All the elements are there. We have a reputation for quality clothing, for reliability, for delivering on time, for flexibility in production, for the fastest response to consumer’s request.”
So will Turkey make the 2023 deadline to turn Istanbul into a new fashion hub? “We are confident we will be able to do that.” -AFP
