Europe’s Fashion Industry at a Crossroads: Why Industrial Policy Matters for Creativity and Competitiveness
The future of Europe’s fashion industry is increasingly shaped by public policy and regulatory frameworks. A recent report published by the European Fashion Alliance highlights the needs of Europe’s creativity-driven fashion sector, while implicitly pointing to a broader challenge: creativity alone cannot sustain the industry without a strong and competitive industrial base.
For ACTE, this debate is particularly relevant at a time when the European Union is redefining its industrial, sustainability and trade policies, all of which have a direct impact on textile and apparel manufacturing.
Regulation as a key driver of competitiveness
The European fashion and textile value chain operates under increasing regulatory pressure, especially in areas such as sustainability, circularity, product compliance and extended producer responsibility (EPR). While these objectives are widely supported, policy coherence and proportionality are essential.
Fragmented national implementation, overlapping requirements and unclear scopes can:
- Increase costs for manufacturers and SMEs
- Discourage investment in European production
- Undermine the competitiveness of EU-based value chains
A creativity-driven fashion industry requires predictable, coordinated and industry-aware regulation to remain viable in Europe.
Manufacturing as a strategic pillar of European fashion
The report underlines the importance of creativity, but its conclusions also reinforce a key message for policymakers: design and creativity depend on proximity to production.
Europe’s textile and garment manufacturers:
- Enable innovation in materials and processes
- Support sustainable and traceable supply chains
- Preserve skills, employment and regional industrial ecosystems
Without a supportive industrial policy, Europe risks weakening the very foundations that allow creative fashion to develop and scale.
ACTE perspective: the need for an integrated policy approach
From ACTE’s point of view, the future of Europe’s fashion industry depends on a better alignment between creative, industrial and regulatory policies. This includes:
- Recognising textile and apparel manufacturing as strategic industrial assets
- Ensuring that sustainability legislation is clear, workable and proportionate
- Supporting SMEs across the entire fashion and textile value chain
- Strengthening Europe’s production capacity as part of its industrial and competitiveness agenda
ACTE will continue to contribute to the European policy debate, advocating for frameworks that enable creativity while safeguarding industrial competitiveness and manufacturing capacity in Europe.
Access the full report
The analysis referenced in this article is based on the report published by the European Fashion Alliance on the needs of Europe’s creativity-driven fashion industry. The report provides valuable insights for policymakers, industry stakeholders and companies across the fashion and textile value chain.