Bharat Tex 2026 sparks debate over integrated retailer-exporter format; organisers defend domestic focus

Bharat Tex 2026, touted as the world’s largest integrated event for the textile value chain, has drawn flak from some exporters. They argued that the event does not give adequate focus to exporters.

This year, the government merged the summer edition of the India International Garment Fair (IIGF) with Bharat Tex, which is running from July 14-17 at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi. Exporters said that the standalone IIGF, dedicated to connecting them with international buyers, was more effective in generating business and export orders. This year’s event placed exporters with retailers together under one roof, which some exporters claim is taking focus away from them.

In an Instagram post, Shishir Kapoor, Director of Lucknow-based MLK Exports, said taxpayers’ money was being “entirely wasted” just to show footfalls at the exhibition. “I appeal to all exporters to boycott Bharat Tex next time; IIGF should be brought back. Otherwise, we don’t want to come back,” he said, clearly dissatisfied with the situation at the event.


Speaking to The Economic Times Digital, Kapoor said that IIGF had a strictly business-to-business (B2B) focus, while here even B2C visitors are attending the event. “The credentials of attendees at IIGF used to be checked by the organisers. Today, who is screening the visitors coming in? The quality of buyers has dropped significantly, and it is hurting the business. If someone is attending after spending Rs 45,000-Rs 50,000 on an economy ticket and [the organiser] doesn’t even check if they have a factory or not, their purpose is achieved after taking free samples from every stall and getting the value of their money spent. These are not genuine buyers; they just visit for their own benefit,” he said.

Rajiv Tandon of Rishub Fashion said that the massive scale of the event acts as a deterrent in itself. “It used to be a compact hall earlier. Now, it is so widespread in scale that buyers go in different directions, and it is difficult to track them. Our intent is to connect with buyers from other countries to expand the scale of operations. There are a lot of walk-ins here, but it is not of much benefit to us, as they come in search of retail purchases,” he said.

“IIGF used to be exclusively for exporters and drove relevant queries for us,” he highlighted, adding that the overall turnout and the impact have not been satisfactory for them.

Some other exporters said that while the government’s intent to integrate Bharat Tex with IIGF has been good, the purpose of IIGF has got lost somewhere in it all. Arun Gupta, Managing Partner at Jaipur-based Kiran Modes, said that restricted entry should be implemented for more focus.

“We have suggested to authorities that at least make IIGF within Bharat Tex so that all focus and glory is not lost. Right now, it is open for all, and we have no idea who’s who in the crowd. We are very confused how to entertain the buyers and whether they are retailers, students or simply visitors attending the event. As a result, there have not been too many meaningful queries this time. A complete remodelling of the event is needed if business is the desired outcome,” he said.

Gupta emphasised the need to differentiate B2B from B2C at such an event. “They start negotiating with us in stalls—a lot of time and energy is wasted, and genuine buyers are lost in that process. The very purpose of participating in the event is then defeated,” he said.

In response to the exporter comments, Rakesh Kumar, Core Committee Member, Bharat Tex Trade Federation (BTTF), said that the vision of Bharat Tex is much bigger and wider in scope, as clearly outlined in the catalogue.

“We also want to capture the retail market, which is quite big. Shishir Kapoor of MLK Exports has participated for the third time with the same format, so he is well aware of how it is designed. Now the India market is quite big in itself, and this is in sync with the 5F (farm, fibre, factory, fashion, and foreign) vision. In fact, BTTF and Première Vision Paris are forging closer ties to strengthen textile and apparel trade between India and the EU. So, the vision is greater, not micro,” he said.

Kumar added that players such as Trident have a 600 sq. metres booth here, and similarly, other bigger brands have also set up stalls. “We have a 25% higher booking for next year's event and will need to see how to accommodate them here,” he said.