Guven Karaca, President of Istanbul Leather and Leather Products Exporters’ Association, stated that they export to 163 countries and said, “We aim to export $2.5 billion in 2023.”
Karaca, who participated in the fair in Antalya, said that the leather and leather products industry exported $1.7 billion last year.
Stating that they exceeded the total figure of last year in the 10 months of the year, Karaca reminded that they broke the previous year’s export record by exporting $1.77 billion at the end of October.
Guven Karaca drew attention to the fact that exports increased to $1.86 billion at the end of November, and said:
“We aim to close the year with an export of $2 billion. We export to 163 countries. We export the most to Germany, Italy, Russia and the USA. We aim to export $2.5 billion in 2023. When we look at the countries we export to regionally, 40% is the European Union, 16% is the Eastern Bloc countries and 16% is the Middle East countries.”
Karaca said that while they closed 2021 with an average kilogram value of $9.5, the kilogram price has increased to $11-12 dollars, and that they want to increase the average kilogram value to $13 in the next year.
“World brands want to manufacture in Turkiye”
Stating that some world brands have decided to manufacture in Turkiye, Karaca said:
“Many global companies understood the importance of producing in Turkiye after the epidemic. They are producing at a point very close to the European region. There is a demand from representatives of world brands to produce in Turkiye. Within two weeks, we will meet with some global brands in the USA and Europe. We had consultations. Companies that export $50 million a year each.”
Source: Trthaber / Translated by Irem Yildiz