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Birteks Tricot & Textile used to focus its business on needle and platinum sales about 20 years ago, and prepares now to start collaboration with Japan and Taiwan as result of comprehensive R&D activities.
Intending to contribute for high quality and best available price policies through the sales of SHIBATA (Japanese) and TOLON (Taiwanese) products, Birteks is at the same time official distributor of both German Klüber greases and Hyosung Creora Spandex elastane yarns. The company’s wide customer portfolio and product quality are proof enough to manifest its long-lasting success in the sector. Mr. Erol Türkan, Birteks Marketing and Sales Manager, showed the kindness to make an interview about the company’s activities and the sector’s current situation, starting his words with “Birteks has always been and will always be open to innovations. We will continue to strengthen our company by means of new brands and distributorships”.
Could you please provide brief information about your product range and the usage areas thereof?
“First of all, I have to note that Birteks Tricot & Textile used to focus its business and sales activities exclusively on needle and platinum products about 20 years ago. Having served the sector for many years, our company developed
itself into a role model for other suppliers of the sector, and acquired distributorships to sell also other product types such as yarns, grease etc. Examples of major items in our current product range include needles and platinum of the brands Shibata, Tolon, Samsung, Fukuhara, along with the distribution of Klüber (grease) and CreoraSpandex (elastane yarn). The needles and platinum articles sold by our company – as an important actor of notably the circular knitting industry over the past few years – are suitable for all circular knitting machines that are in common use. Therefore, we always try to keep in stock a sufficient number of needles and platinum inserts for all sizes and machines. Besides, our company is also capable to produce special, customer-specific items that are not available on the market with a guarantee of timely delivery. Meanwhile, we have also engaged in the sales of Klüber grease products, intended for use in circular knitting machines. We also sell CreoraSpandex yarns to customers who are engaged in circular knitting, sock productions, narrow weaving, gimped yarns etc.”
What makes your company distinct from your competitors? What are the reasons why your products are preferred by consumers?
“Birteks is a company that has been established on a family background in the textile sector; full of valuable experiences and knowledge reaching back to the 1970’s. Therefore, many other companies and individuals of the sector have worked with or were employed at our company one way or the other, and our company became a role model for them. I think that this is what makes the great difference. I believe that this has helped us to increase our experience through many problems and difficulties we had to cope with, while adopting a more customer-oriented attitude, offering a wide range of alternatives, resulting overall in more affordable prices at higher qualities. We can see this also from the wide portfolio of customers that have chosen us. Another aspect of high significance is that our company is capable to give technically detailed responses to customers’ demands within quick time, since we engage in what we really know and in what we are capable to take responsibility of. This is a very desirable aspect in the eyes of the customer, while our after-sales staff makes us jump ahead of our competitors.”
What are the usage areas of Spandex fiber, and thus of Creora? In which way do they contribute to the final product? What are the advantages of Spandex for the end user?
“As already known, CreoraSpandex of Hyosung gained considerable market share in Turkey, notably Istanbul, during the early 2000’s. The product’s presence in the market was maintained by a single distributor for a period of 4-5 years. In 2008, the company established a factory and managed to meet ca. 75% of Turkey’s monthly requirement. I would like to note that the company’s share reached even higher rates in recent years. The factory in Istanbul helped to achieve both improved R&D system and company management, as result of which Creora started to give technical assistance to a large variety of companies. The technical properties of these yarns – which are utilized in a wide range of production activities reaching from circular knitting to sock productions, narrow weaving, gimped yarns, and even diaper productions – surpass the technical properties of almost all other brands. The company managed to develop itself into one of the most prevailing brands, in terms of elongationcoefficient, strength, heat-resistance, fixing properties, and touch of fabrics. What makes Creora go one step ahead of its competitors is that it works with any and every kinds of yarn, is appropriate for all fixing methods, and can be produced in glossy, semi-dull, and dull forms. Our company keeps elastane yarns in stock reaching from 15D up to 140D and 210D. The greatest advantages brought to fabric manufacturers and contract manufacturers are: short delivery time, fresh products thanks to continuous circulation, delivery of products in any desirable amount, machine operating performance and strength, best way available to create lycra effects, best available adaptation to current chemical formulations applied by dye houses, non-selective properties with regard to machines and accessories (needles, platinum etc.), and stabile operability.”
What are your considerations about the sector’s future in our country?
“As everybody else, we too are expecting positive improvements in the sector. However, we haven’t been able to receive sufficient response to our expectations. Fashion, weather conditions, demand frequencies, and last but not least the continuous change in raw material prices lead to stagnation and recession among manufacturers. It might be a cliché to say this, but I can’t help to note that reduction in works is also caused by both poor cash circulation on the market and amended check laws. What we face is a global crisis. As soon as we attempt to expect a revival of the sector, raw material prices (in particular cotton) start to rise, resulting in market stagnation over and over again. In this background, I think that the orders of exporter companies will tend to decrease and customers will gradually incline towards Europe or China. As a matter of fact, many actors of the market have started to use blended yarns due to the increase in cotton prices. We can guess that the companies using polyester and chopped fibers will continue to do so for the next couple of years. Another issue that has to be addressed with regard to the sector is decreased profitability. If this decrease continues, several companies will either have to close or scale down their business. It is worth to note that the sector’s profitability decreased dispute of increasing exports (up to 20 billion dollars). But we have also other problems like brandization or failure to pursue fashion trends.
herefore, I believe that it would be more accurate to work with professional staff. We have been observing that the decreased orders from countries such as Russia, Poland, and the Ukraine have been the result of not only climatic conditions, but also the recent global crisis. There have been orders from Arab customers over the last few months. The summer weather belated by the winter season that has lasted so long has created serious adverse impacts on the current period. The last thing I would like to add for all readers is that everybody should engage in that business, which one knows best. This is, perhaps, one among plenty of factors that impair the sector. It can be seen that yarn manufacturers have started to sell elastane over the last few years. They have bought machines and begun to produce fabric at cotton price. Similarly, dye houses have also bought machines to produce fabric, or even work as contract manufacturer, whereas cloth traders have begun to sell elastane, cotton etc.
I hope that everything will go for the better. I am convinced that the productions in our country are quite good with respect to fabric quality, quick delivery, raw material quality, and blend proportions. And that the season will open sooner or later and revive our business. As we approach the end of the first half of 2013, I think that certain R&D activities need to be carried out for 2014, while recruiting stronger professional staff for the next year. Last but not least, I have to say that everybody should undertake such amount of work as one is capable to cope with, along with a more controlled use of loans.”
Emphasizing that everybody should do its best to overcome the difficulties of these troubled times, be cautious in productions, and avoid capacity overloads, Mr. Türkan advised caution against companies that tend to pop up like mushrooms during stagnant periods.
