Adıyaman textile producers lift e-exports beyond pre-earthquake levels

Textile and knitwear producers in Adıyaman have increased cross-border sales through e-commerce over the past year, with the city taking about 2.9 million domestic and international orders. The figures come from the “Yanınızdayız” project, run by Trendyol under the Trade Ministry with TOBB, MÜSİAD and the Adıyaman Chamber of Commerce and Industry to bring local producers and tradespeople into digital trade after the 6 February earthquakes.

Project data show total orders up 173% year on year. Adıyaman grew faster than the Turkish average in fashion and textiles, home electronics and home textiles, and its e-export order volume has moved above pre-earthquake levels. The organisers said the programme helped local small businesses reach new customers at home and abroad and turn post-earthquake recovery into a growth model.

Some 57% of producers in the city now sell abroad via e-commerce, a share well above the national average, according to the project. That places Adıyaman eighth among Turkish cities for e-export participation and inside the top 10. The number of producers that began e-exporting during the past year rose 65%, while net orders arriving from abroad increased by more than 170%.

Cross-border demand is concentrated in garments. Textiles occupy the first six places in Adıyaman’s top 10 exported products, with T-shirts, singlets, blouses, sweatshirts, dresses, tracksuits, pyjamas, homewear and leggings among the leading items. Cutlery sets, kitchen utensils and watches also feature. The main foreign markets are Azerbaijan, Saudi Arabia, Romania, the United Arab Emirates and Bulgaria; Azerbaijani orders account for more than one fifth of the city’s e-export volume. Domestically, Istanbul is the top destination city, followed by Ankara, İzmir, Antalya and Bursa.

Mehmet Torunoğlu, chairman of the Adıyaman Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said reviving the city’s economy and production capacity after the earthquakes had remained the priority. He described the 57% e-export participation rate and the city’s eighth-place ranking as important for local producers, and said the rise in foreign orders showed that textile and knitwear quality from Adıyaman was reaching markets from Azerbaijan to the Gulf and Europe. The chamber would continue backing SMEs through digitalisation, he added.