Istanbul, Turkey, May 9--Many international companies that did not think of entering the Turkish market a few years ago now include Turkey in their new investment strategies, according to Zaman Online.
One of these is Egyptian Oriental Weavers, which is a leading world carpet producer. Entering the Turkish market with the firm Halýdrom in 2004, the company decided to invest because of the economic and political stability they saw.
The third biggest carpet producer in the world will establish a $10 million carpet production foundation in Gaziantep, Usak, or Corum till the end of this year. Distributing for Oriental Weavers under the name of the Halýdrom for the last year, Hizir Ermis said that it was hard to convince the Egyptian company, which feared investment in the Turkish market because of Turkey's past economic instability. Ermiþ notes that the sales they actualized in one year was also effective in the decision of the firm to invest in Turkey.
Hýzýr Ermiþ reports that Oriental Weavers officials have high expectations of the Turkish market and will invest $3 million in advertising. According to Ermis, who says that youth makes up two-thirds of Turkish population, the urban population is growing day by day and this has great potential for the carpet market. This is quite attractive to foreign investors. While the Turkish carpet market makes $1 million annually, 50 million square meters of carpet is made every year. Forty-five percent of the carpets produced in Turkey are exported to the Middle East and European Union countries, and especially the US.
