"The textile industry in Iasi hangs by a thread. The decline of this industry, once the pride of the country: figures and forecasts", 27 September 2024

The destiny of garment and textile factories already seems to be set. Companies with a history of over 30 years in the industry have gone bankrupt, and many of those that have resisted are reducing their activity little by little. In Iasi alone, in the last 16 years, almost 500 companies have disappeared, and the trend continues...The decline of the garment and textile industry can be seen equally well throughout the country, but also outside it, in Europe's neighbors. However, despite this phenomenon, Poland is still doing well...

...more and more famous factories in the industry are closing their doors. In the summer of this year, one of the largest companies in the country announced its retirement. Serconf SA in Botoșani, where just last month the collective dismissal procedure was started. For others, on the other hand, the pandemic was the end of the line. This end was also attended by two large garment factories in Satu-Mare and Sibiu. These are Mondiala and Sib Dress. Aries Textile from Arad...one of the most famous players in the global fashion industry, also joined the same trend, and the examples can continue, unfortunately. Iasi is no exception...

Here, in the last 16 years alone, almost 500 companies in the industry have closed

This was due to increasing international competition, high production costs, difficulties in attracting and retaining employees, fiscal measures, problems that tilted the economic balance towards Asian countries, which are much more accessible to the business environment...

"In our industry, in a company's expenses, wage costs are somewhere between 60 and 70%... Many garment factories in the country have already closed....Because they can no longer bear these costs," fashion designer Irina Schrotter explained to Ziarul de Business...

In Iasi...the only [city] that still offers specializations for all sectors of the textile and leather industry, the same phenomenon is happening. From the beginning of this year until now, 19 companies in the field have closed here...

According to data provided to ZdI by the National Trade Register Office (ONRC), currently, in Iasi, there are 563 companies operating in the textile and clothing industry. More than 500 are active in the manufacture of garments and in the production of other textile articles...

The representative of some garment factories in Iasi also admits that the problems are far from over. In his turn, he complains that the trend is to reduce the number of employees, due to the fiscal measures approved by the Government.

"The trend will be downward. A lot of people left Poland too. And they will also leave Romania. They will go to Tunisia and Morocco. From 2023, the salary went from 2,500 lei to 3,800 lei. So, in a year or so. Romania has the highest increase in labor costs in Europe (...) So, they are all kind of bankrupt, and there will be no one left to export anything. And he has no one to work anymore, because productivity has not increased(...) In Romania there is absolutely no support from the Romanian state. On the contrary!", said Dan Popescu, representative of HH Textile Manufacturing Garments SRL....

[Translation via Microsoft Edge]