Expansion in the highly fragmented and overcrowded workwear market in Western Europe will depend upon a manufacturer’s ability to provide fashionable products, technical textiles and, equally importantly, establish a solid marketing strategy.


Frost & Sullivan (http://www.chemicals.frost.com) finds that the European Workwear Markets earned revenues of €3.19 billion in 2005 and estimates this to reach €3.72 billion in 2012.

Sustained growth in Western Europe’s mature workwear markets has been due to the continued expansion of its customer base. Despite a lack of product innovation, workwear manufacturers have been able to grow by finding new employers keen to establish an image for their company.

“Companies are increasingly adopting workwear in order to create a corporate image,” explains Frost & Sullivan Research Analyst Paula Connor. “It is a proven fact that companies who adopt company attire have higher sales and more repeat business and workwear manufacturers need to leverage this trend in order to grow.”

However, overcoming competition from European and Asian rivals will be a challenging task. With small local firms, large pan-European companies and Asian importers all vying for business from the same customer base, the result has been intensifying competition.

Manufacturers will also need to confront market maturity and low growth rates. Moreover, there are approximately 750 companies competing for workwear contracts throughout the region resulting in a highly fragmented competitive landscape.

“It is important for any company currently active in the workwear market to distinguish itself from its competitors – not an easy task in such a crowded market,” comments Ms. Connor. “In order to gain a significant market share, workwear manufacturers must utilise trends in fashion and technical textiles to their advantage.”