According to Procolombia figures, the textile industry contributes 9.4% of the industrial GDP and employs more than 600,000 people.

Colombian textile brands have been gaining ground in international and national markets. This circumstance is thanks to their fabrics and clothing quality, avant-garde designs, and the innovation or imposition of new trends. They have become some of the favorites of Colombian consumers. For this reason, despite the nation’s economy’s contraction, Colombia’s textile industry continues to be very strong. According to Procolombia, it contributes 9.4% of the country’s industrial GDP and employs more than 600,000 people.

Additionally, according to the Superintendency of Companies, textile companies moved 14.34 billion Colombian pesos in 2022, and 25 companies were registered among the 1,000 largest in the country, with a combined turnover of 11.5 billion pesos.

In this panorama, five Colombian textile brands are beginning to appear as some of the most promising for 2024. These companies’ positions are not only due to their rankings in the industry but also due to their projections, expansion strategies, growth in sales, and innovation and development. These factors ensure them a position among the options that will be most popular for Colombians and with the greatest projections for growth for next year.

GEF/White Point

The fusion of elegance and comfort defines the GEF/Punto Blanco proposal. With a consolidated history, this is one of the edITED that has conquered the market with garments that go beyond trends, incorporating quality and versatility.

The company is a part of the Crystal group, a business entity with approximately US 1.01 billion Colombian pesos in revenues in 2022. This brand currently has 71% of its portfolio production as sustainable, a factor that has been key to attracting consumers increasingly interested in preserving the environment. GE/Punto Blanco aspires to become one of the most sustainable fashion companies in the Latin American region.

Koach

Koach is one of the textile brands in Colombia that stands as a beacon of innovation in the country’s fashion scene. Its ability to capture emerging trends and translate them into attractive garments has earned the loyalty of consumers eager to capture a contemporary style.

Owned by Permoda, this company is listed as one of the largest in the industry, as its operating income is US 913.7 billion pesos in 2022, which represents a growth of 22.3% compared to the previous year.

Quest

With more than 28 years in the industry, this brand has become one of the leading textile brands in Colombia. The company has stood out for handling high-quality fabrics, its innovation, development, and technology processes, and being a brand that has imposed a masculine trend.

It should be noted that Quest has a presence in more than 70 cities in the country and nearly 150 stores. Thanks to its potential in markets such as Valle del Cauca, Santander, and the Coast. Quest closed 2022 with sales growth of 30% and income of more than 200 billion Colombian pesos.

Their potential for 2024 is because they have built a long-term relationship with their customers under the umbrella of three clothing categories: casual wear, jeans wear, and streetwear. In addition, it should be added that they seek to reach new market segments. This is why they are betting on growth leveraged by a franchise model, international expansion, and a significant boost to their digital channels.

However, what stands out most about this company is that it has 420 points of sale and around 6,000 employees.

Patprimo

This casual fashion icon has established itself as a benchmark for releasing fresh and authentic collections that have resonated with an audience that values authenticity and casual style.

Sixty-five years after being founded, Patprimo closed in 2022 with 134 stores, 126 open in Colombia, 5 more in Ecuador, 2 in Costa Rica, and 1 in Panama. Belonging to the Adotex group, which includes brands such as Facol and Seven, it is estimated to sell almost 1 billion pesos annually. It is ranked 201 among the 1,000 largest companies in the country.

Likewise, this company had the first place in income within the textile industry, with a capital close to US 1.26 billion pesos and a year-on-year increase of 28.08%. However, their current big bet is on a strategy in which they are focused on strengthening consumers’ brand experience and positioning Patprimo as a current and sophisticated fashion alternative.

Studio F

Behind this brand is the renowned STF Group, which also owns ELA. With more than 25 years of experience, this Valle del Cauca company has added new milestones daily. It is not only among the 50 most productive companies in the region. Still, it has also carried out a successful expansion plan that allows it to have more than 520 points of sale between physical stores, e-commerce, and corners, distributed in Colombia, Mexico, Panama, Chile, Puerto Rico, Ecuador, Peru, Guatemala, Honduras, and Curacao.

Additionally, last year, they closed with over $900 billion turnover. This is an amount that its directors assure they plan to surpass by being able to close with a growth of more than 10%; many experts in textile brands in Colombia are confident that it will achieve it. Recently, the company has been readying itself for its arrival in Spain and opening its new store in Bogotá: Studio F Man.

It should be noted that these textile brands in Colombia are witnesses of the present fashion boom in the country and architects of its future.

Colombian textile brands have garnered significant acclaim and popularity throughout Latin America, establishing themselves as regional fashion and textile market leaders. The textile industry in Colombia not only stands as a testament to the country’s rich cultural heritage and craftsmanship but also plays a pivotal role in its economic landscape. Indeed, the sector significantly contributes to Colombia’s manufacturing GDP, underscoring its importance in driving industrial growth. Furthermore, the industry serves as a robust generator of employment opportunities, providing livelihoods to many Colombians and bolstering the nation’s socio-economic fabric.

Guest Blog Post: Wendy Mena, Investment Promotion Advisor, Invest Guatemala

Small and medium-sized companies must enter the formal sector of the Guatemalan economy. By integrating themselves into Central American value chains, Guatemala and the region will become more attractive to international investors.

The Guatemalan economy benefits from regional trade

Guatemala, as one of the leading trading partners of Central American countries, has an excellent opportunity to integrate into regional value chains. Currently, Guatemala is an essential supplier to the countries of the region of inputs such as packaging, containers, agricultural and agro-industrial products, and textile materials that complement their production processes. This makes Guatemala a key partner in terms of regional value chains. The formalization and internationalization of small and medium-sized businesses and the attraction of investments in the Guatemalan economy will strengthen this complementarity and make the entire region more resilient and attractive to investors. Central American countries should focus on something other than competing among themselves but on strengthening the areas where their economies complement each other.

An event called ExpoParks was recently held in Costa Rica. This was the first gathering in the region dedicated to publicizing the offer of industrial parks and free zones in Central America and the Dominican Republic to companies looking for options to move their operations to countries closer to North American consumers. That is, it offered options to implement the nearshoring strategy. This is a strategy that is attracting historic investment flows to Latin America. It is a crucial opportunity for the Guatemalan economy and the rest of Central America.

Guatemala can benefit from its proximity to Mexico

To attract foreign direct investment, it is necessary to concentrate on different areas. On the one hand, Guatemala must formulate and implement policies to promote and modernize the supply of industrial parks. This is the case for the Guatemalan economy because the rest of the region has an advantage in industrial areas, ready for new companies to start operations and specialize in industries with greater added value. Second, because it is the closest neighbor to Mexico, Guatemala can take advantage of the opportunities that the former country can no longer absorb. On the other hand, in order to further fortify the Guatemalan economy, it is vital to strengthen the network of local suppliers to complement the value chains.

Given the significant nearshoring investment flows that its neighbor to the North generates, Guatemala’s proximity to Mexico opens the doors to opportunities. Guatemala can integrate itself into low and medium-complexity manufacturing value chains to supply clusters such as automotive, agri-food, medical devices, pharmaceuticals, and other light manufacturing activities. It can also become the logistics hub for North America for these industries thanks to Guatemala’s competitive distribution costs.

Along with the rest of Central America, the Guatemalan economy shares competitive advantages for nearshoring, such as strategic location, cultural affinity with North America, competitive operating costs, and a substantial network of free trade agreements. The industries’ specialization differentiates Guatemala, the workforce’s qualities, and the regulations for business start-ups. Like Costa Rica, Guatemala stands out for the size of its domestic market, political and economic stability, the redundancy of renewable electrical energy, and a well-organized business sector. However, those who view Central America from abroad see a region with a common foreign trade framework and economic institutions that unite its countries. A regional approach to development is vital since, in terms of population size and total production, the countries of the isthmus are very small when they act individually.

Central America has experienced strong economic growth in recent years

According to data from the World Bank, presented by one of the leading companies in corporate real estate services, Central America and the Dominican Republic represent 0.8% of the world’s population (61 million inhabitants) and 0.4 of the world’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in 2022. Central America is a collection of small economies. However, the region stands out for reporting the highest economic growth figures in two recent years, with 11.1% in 2021 and 4.9% in 2022. It also stands out for having a solid export structure, in which exports of goods and services represent 34.1% of GDP and by attracting foreign investment flows that have averaged 4.3% with respect to GDP.

This shows that, as a region, Central America offers more than a strategic location for nearshoring. As purely exporting countries, the region has the potential to integrate into global value chains with higher value-added products to the extent that it can also take advantage of the complementarity of the region’s economies. This will enable Central American countries to work together to face challenges that limit more investment from reaching the region, such as the availability of qualified labor, development of adequate productive infrastructure, modern investment attraction regimes, and promoting the digitalization and simplification of procedures that multinationals must comply with to start operations.

This is why, to take advantage of the nearshoring strategy better, Guatemala must focus on developing a network of suppliers to integrate into the region’s value chains that help create an ecosystem to form new economic clusters in the country. Micro, small, and medium-sized companies in the Guatemalan economy have an excellent opportunity to be part of this network of suppliers and thus grow their businesses or start new ones. This will also allow exports to grow, attract investment to more sophisticated sectors, and generate the more than 2.5 million good-quality jobs that the country needs

This post is a translated and edited version of an opinion piece that was originally published at PrensaLibre.com