Textile Companies in Istanbul, Turkey

Istanbul is Turkey's largest province for both apparel and yarn-fabric exports, but export records show where an exporter is registered, not where the goods were made. According to exporter-association records, US$11.57 billion of Turkey's US$16.77 billion ready-to-wear apparel and clothing exports in 2025 (69%) were registered to Istanbul exporters, as were US$3.80 billion of US$9.39 billion textile and raw materials (yarn, fabric, fiber) exports (41%) (AKİB reports, December 2025). Use Istanbul to find a company's head office and trading network, and ask separately where your order will be produced.

The textile cluster in Istanbul

A 2007 report by Turkey's State Planning Organization (DPT) on the textile, leather and clothing industries says that circular knitting, knitwear and hosiery clusters, as well as apparel clusters, have formed in Istanbul. The same report notes that the apparel supporting industry, meaning products such as buttons, zippers, labels and interlining, is produced mainly in Istanbul. The report is almost twenty years old, so use the province and sub-sector filters on this page to see today's distribution.

One recommendation of the report is that pre-sewing work such as design, pattern making and purchasing, together with marketing and sales, stay in metropolises like Istanbul while labor-intensive sewing moves to the Anatolian provinces. This is a recommendation, not a description of today's situation, but it shows why an Istanbul-based company may place your order with a factory in another province. The Ministry of Trade's home textiles report (2026 edition, based on 2025 data) also lists Istanbul among the provinces where tulle (sheer curtain fabric) and bed sheet production is concentrated.

Fabric and clothing markets

According to the Istanbul Provincial Directorate of Culture and Tourism's shopping page, Merter is a textile trade center built in the 1960s that has both retail and wholesale stores. The same page associates Laleli with clothing, shoes and accessories and Sultanhamam with fabric, and describes Unkapanı, the Istanbul Drapers Bazaar, as a center of upholstery fabric, curtain, wallpaper and flooring stores. The page is undated, so confirm store and product details on site.

A market trader is not the same as a manufacturer. If you buy stock fabric, ask who made it and whether you can reorder from the same lot. If you want your own design produced, work from the manufacturer and CMT workshop listings instead.

Finding suppliers in Istanbul

• Choose a sub-sector: knit apparel, woven apparel, knitwear and sweaters, underwear and lingerie or socks and hosiery.
• For materials, see fabric, stock fabric, wholesale clothing and trims and accessories.
• For contract sewing, use the CMT sewing workshops list and the guide How to Choose a CMT Workshop in Turkey. For checks before you place a first order, see Clothing Manufacturers in Turkey.
• For market data, read Turkey Textile and Apparel Exports 2025; to meet suppliers in person, see the textile trade fairs calendar.