A vest town says yes
For fifty years Tiruppur made white vests for India. In 1978 an Italian importer, Verona, asked for white T-shirts, and in 1981 the European chain C&A followed. Exports were ₹18.69 crore in 1985, ₹289.85 crore in 1990 and ₹3,581 crore in 2000.
A bazaar, not a factory
Tiruppur works less like one factory and more like a bazaar. Thousands of units each do one job, knitting, dyeing, printing, stitching or packing, and pass the work along. An exporter with an order can hire the rest of the town for a week. “Competition is coupled with cooperation,” says the association’s general secretary.
“Competition is coupled with cooperation.”
That is why a firm with a few machines can take an export order: it does not need to own every step.
A record in a hard year
On 27 August 2025 the US raised tariffs on Indian clothing to 50%, and India’s garment exports fell about 10% in September and 13% in October. Even so, Tiruppur’s exports reached about ₹46,000 crore in 2025-26, a record. Its buyers include Primark, H&M and Walmart. The town has set a target of ₹1 lakh crore by 2030, while short of about 1.5 lakh workers.
Points for a finance reader
- You do not have to own every step. Job work lets a small firm take a big order without a big balance sheet.
- Cost each job you buy in. Dyeing, printing and stitching charges are direct costs of the order (CAS-10).
- Spread markets as well as work. When one country raises tariffs, other buyers keep the lines running.