The European textile services industry has the potential to grow to up to four times its present size according to a recent study commissioned by the European Textile Services Association and carried out by Deloitte.
The report, "Quantifying the opportunity" says that the textile services industry is already an important contributor to the European economy. In 2012 the sector had an annual turnover of €11billion and employed 135,000 people.
Looking at data for textile rental across 30 European countries, and in five main product types. Flatwork and workwear are the two largest sectors and additionally the report considered washroom, dust control and clean room. It found that almost every sector had grown in recent years, despite the poor economic climate.
Currently the overall rate for use of textile rental service is around 30% and the researchers looked at two models. In the more conservative estimate the industry could achieve turnover of between €21.5 and €26 while a more aggressive estimate that assumes a 100% rate for every category, predicts that turnover could reach €38 - €46billion.
TEXTILE SECTOR: With current value of €3.5 to €3.8billion workwear is the second largest sector in textile services
