Industry Development of Garment and Apparel Manufacturing in Taiwan
The textile industry was a leading sector in Taiwan's early industrialization stage. The growth and achievements of the textile industry also led to the development of other industrial sectors. The garment manufacturing industries are downstream industries in the textile industry chain. Its upstream includes fiber manufacturing, chemical additives, spinning, weaving, dyeing and finishing, and other industries. The garment manufacturing industry are the processing stage in the industry chain. It is also an important industry that gives added value to textiles.
The garment manufacturing industry should break away from the foundry model, strengthen R&D and technological innovation, enhance design energy, and focus on strengthening differentiated products, launching high-value single products to increase profits, and have more opportunities to activate the overall textile industry. Take functional clothing as an example. The functional fabrics produced by Taiwanese textile manufacturers account for up to 70% of the global market, and they have a complete industrial chain.
In addition, the pollution caused by fast fashion's profitable business model of low-cost, disposable garments has been criticized, and the textile industry has been renamed as the second most polluting industry in the world, second only to the petrochemical industry. However, consumers’ awareness of environmental protection has gradually increased, and the demand for sustainable fashion has also increased. Fortunately, in recent years, Taiwan’s environmental protection textile technology has been continuously improved, allowing Taiwan’s textile industry to seize the opportunity. In the future, the garment manufacturing industry can also focus on eternal fashion. Continuous production of apparel products strengthens the integration of the industrial chain and enhances the competitiveness of the garment manufacturing industry.
