Colombia’s textile and clothing sector accounted for 11.6% of the country’s manufacturing gross
domestic product (GDP) and for 1.7% of its total GDP in 2007.
The range of manufacturing activities in the sector spans the entire supply chain, including cotton
growing, man-made fibre production, textile processing and the manufacture of finished apparel. The
sector comprises almost 500 textile mills and 10,000 apparel producers and provides over 600,000
direct and indirect jobs.
Examples of Colombia’s largest textile and clothing companies include jeans producers CI El Globo
and CI Jeans, fabric producer Fabricato Tejicóndor, and vertically integrated knitwear manufacturers
Crystal, Manufacturas Eliot, Modinco and Protela. All of these firms are heavily involved in exports
and have established important partnerships with international brands, including Abercrombie &
Fitch, Calvin Klein, Dockers, Gap, Levi Strauss, Polo Ralph Lauren and Tommy Hilfiger.
Almost all of Colombia’s textile and clothing exports are sold to customers in the USA and nearby
Latin American countries. Very few firms have made the foray into markets further afield, such as
those in the EU.
Notwithstanding this, Colombia’s exports of textiles and clothing rose by a noticeable 47% in 2007
to reach a value of US$2.05 bn. At this level, they accounted for 5.4% of Colombia’s total exports
during the year.
Important characteristics of Colombia’s industry include: a low dependency by producers on imported
yarns and fabrics, which is helped by the presence of a number of vertically integrated companies with
large-scale modern manufacturing equipment; a large supply of inexpensive labour, albeit relatively
unskilled; and a rapidly growing domestic market, supported by strong growth in the domestic economy.
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