Indian MMF sector should tap the potential in “affordable synthetic fashion”, says study

The rising mid-income populations across Africa, South East Asia, and Latin America has led to a growth in demand for performance-driven, climate-adapted, and cost-sensitive apparel that the Indian manmade fibre (MMF) sector can tap, according to a knowledge paper released recently by the Confederation of Indian Textile Industry (CITI) and Wazir Advisors.

The study, which highlights the white spaces in the global MMF economy where India can build first-mover advantage or regional dominance, said one such area is affordable synthetic fashion, especially for the global south. Most of the global MMF suppliers are currently geared towards premium western brands.

The Indian textile industry can develop and export lightweight synthetic hijabs, wrinkle-free uniforms, and weather-resistant workwear.

The study also underlines the need to prioritise expansion and modernisation of India’s downstream MMF capabilities. While the country has established a strong base in polyester staple fibre and filament yarn production, its capacity to weave value-added fabrics and garments is limited.

Strategic investments are required to expand the capabilities across MMF fabric processing and apparel manufacturing. There is also for vertically integrated MMF apparel clusters equipped with common infrastructure.

Compared to countries such as China and Vietnam, India lacks synthetic-focused garmenting units that can serve volume orders with global quality standards. Infrastructure-led schemes such as PM MITRA Parks must prioritise plug-and-play facilities for MMF apparel, coupled with incentive structures to attract large domestic and international investments in synthetic garment production, the knowledge paper said.

The government policies must support raw material security, ensuring that quality inputs are available at competitive prices, it said.