Bharat Tex 2024 (India International Textile Exhibition) was held in New Delhi, India for four days from February 26th to 29th, 2024. KOWA exhibited for the first time at this world-class international exhibition, organized by the Ministry of Textiles of India.

This time, we exhibited different types of products, such as an original denim collection that focuses on raw materials such as suvin and washi paper, and a collection that luxuriously incorporates the unique luster of extra-long staple cotton, and as a result, we received a great response from Indian companies. We will report on this exhibition, where we saw great progress toward expanding the Indian market.

The event was attended not only by people from the apparel industry, but also by many members of the media and the general public.

Nearby hotels were fully booked early on, clearly conveying the high expectations not only from within India but from all over the world.

In fact, the atmosphere at the exhibition was the same as that of China before its GDP rapid growth in the early 2000s, and it was clear that countries around the world were showing increasing enthusiasm to invest in India.

The first step towards developing new markets in India

This time, KOWA and Kowa India Pvt. Ltd. are jointly exhibiting.

The purpose of the event was to build new business in India. 70 companies, mainly apparel designers, textile converters, and agents, visited the KOWA booth, and more than 90% of them were Indian companies.

Originally, Kowa India Pvt. Ltd. had built its business around exports to Japan, taking advantage of India's characteristics as a major raw material producing country. However, this exhibition gave the company the opportunity to view India as a new market and to take on the challenge of developing new markets.

Japanese products generally receive positive reviews

The needs of the Indian market are clear

This exhibition has given us an insight into the needs in the Indian market.

First of all, there was a high demand for polyurethane blends, and many people expressed a desire for stretch denim with polyurethane blends in particular. In addition, many visitors requested knit materials, which suggests the possibility of a knit material collection.

In terms of trends, there were many requests for shiny satin material.

India has now surpassed China to become the world's most populous country, but its per capita productivity and salary income remain low compared to developed countries.

However, if per capita GDP and income levels rise, as is the case in modern-day China, there should be a great opportunity for Japanese high value-added materials to enter the Indian market.

This exhibition was an opportunity to find great hope for the expansion of the market for Japanese apparel products in India.