The value of Poland’s clothing market amounts to 66.9 billion PLN, of which 10 billion PLN comes from domestic production, according to data from PIOT (Polish Clothing and Textile Employers’ Association). Since the pandemic, the industry has faced a series of challenges, the most serious being rising labor and production costs, disrupted supply chains, declining domestic and foreign orders, and unfair competition – mainly from imports from China. The scale of the crisis forced 500 companies to exit the market last year. Manufacturers are now calling on the government for support.
“The clothing and textile industry has two faces. The textile sector is highly innovative, with advanced techniques and technologies that benefit the entire economy. Only 10% of textiles go into clothing. The rest serve industries such as transport, construction, automotive, and healthcare,”
explains Aleksandra Krysiak, director of PIOT.
Skills Shortages and Growing Sub-Sectors
The textile sector is among the most innovative in the economy but struggles with a lack of skilled labor. Poland has only one university faculty dedicated to textile technology – at Lodz University of Technology. Secondary-level education in this field is slowly recovering, but according to PIOT, it remains insufficient.
Segments showing resilience include corporate clothing – particularly uniforms for the military, police, customs, firefighters, and emergency services – fueled by rising defense spending. The lingerie sector is also performing well, with Polish producers recognized in Europe for quality and design.
Shift to Online Sales
The clothing sector, however, is under strain. Distribution channels shrank after the pandemic, with a significant shift toward online sales. In 2024, brick-and-mortar stores still accounted for 87.2% of sales (58.3 billion PLN), while e-commerce reached 12.8% (8.6 billion PLN), up 23.7% year-on-year.
“We face difficulties due to a flood of unfair imports and earlier supply disruptions. While supply chains are stabilizing, they posed serious risks to production,”
says Krysiak.
Poland’s Role in Europe
Poland is a major player in the EU textile and clothing sector, ranking third in number of textile companies (after France and Italy), third in textile employment (after Italy and Germany), and fourth in both number of clothing companies (after Italy, France, and Czechia) and employment in clothing (after Italy, Romania, and Portugal).
Officially, the industry employs around 80,000 people, but including microenterprises with fewer than nine workers, the figure rises to 120,000–150,000. According to PIOT, in 2024 there were 24,537 clothing companies in Poland employing 44,300 people. Over 500 exited the market last year, including 423 micro, 58 small, 19 medium, and one large enterprise.
Western Slowdown, Chinese Expansion
The decline is linked to reduced production and a crisis in Western Europe. Germany, once a key partner for Polish manufacturers, cut back orders significantly. PIOT hopes that with stabilization in Western Europe, opportunities for renewed cooperation will return.
Unfair imports and the rise of Chinese e-commerce platforms were major themes of the July meeting of the Tripartite Team for the Light Industry. PIOT representatives warned that subsidized, low-cost imports are undermining local production, supported by aggressive marketing, customs evasion, and consumer rights violations. The meeting marked the first such dialogue in years and followed the sector’s appeal for government support.
Rising Costs and Wage Pressures
The industry also faces rapidly rising costs – not only from labor but also from energy, gas, utilities, and transport.
“Over the past five to seven years, the minimum wage has risen by more than 60%. This creates problems for competitiveness. When wage costs rise faster than prices, our products become uncompetitive,”
Krysiak explains.
Companies without diversified products or strong market positions are disappearing. Average wages in the clothing industry are nearly 30% lower than in other sectors, making it harder to attract and retain skilled specialists. Firms must pay ever-higher wages to experts while also facing demands from lower-paid staff, which reduces pay differentials between roles.
“Specialists bear greater responsibility – for design, technology, and production supervision – yet the wage gap with basic production workers is narrowing. This creates tension and makes retaining talent harder,”
adds Krysiak.
Outlook
Despite the challenges, PIOT remains cautiously optimistic. The government has committed to ongoing dialogue and potential policy tools to protect the domestic market, curb unfair imports, and strengthen Poland’s role as a key textile and clothing hub in Europe.
