TAFL* Sector in Moldova

*Textile, Apparel, Footwear & Leather goods

553

entities

6%

of total exports

20 000+

Employees

Over 78% exports

to EU countries, mostly 🇮🇹 Italy, 🇷🇴 Romania, 🇩🇪 Germany, 🇵🇱 Poland

Collaboration with prestigious brands

The Moldovan TAFL sector's commitment to quality has earned the confidence of prestigious brands like Trussardi, Moncler, Armani, United Colors of Benetton, and Max Mara.

Economic
Forecast

EU integration Until 2030

According to the IMF forecasts in the period 2025-2029, the GDP of the Republic of Moldova will grow on average by approximately 5% per year, a much faster pace than the regional average estimated at 3% per year. 

In the next 5 years, the Republic of Moldova will have the highest economic growth in the region and will surpass Armenia, Belarus, Georgia, North Macedonia and Albania in terms of Gross Domestic Product per capita.

DCFTA - Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area with the European Union;

CEFTA - Central European Free Trade Agreement (Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, and UNMIK Kosovo);

EFTA - European Free Trade Association (Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, Switzerland);

GUAM - Organization for Democracy and Economic Development (Georgia, Ukraine, Azerbaijan);

SPTC - Strategic Partnership, Trade and Cooperation Agreement between The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and The Republic of Moldova UK;

FTA with Turkey;

FTA with CIS countries - Armenia, Azerbaijan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan;

Participation in International Transport
Networks

European Agreement on the great international roads (AGR) Republic of Moldova Law nr. 17-XVI, 10.02.2006

Trans-European Transport Network TEN-T

Ease of doing business

Over 65%

of business public services are digitalised

100% Digitalisation

of Public Services by 2030

Online one-stop-shop

for permits and fast business entity registration

Electronic

Power of attorney in relations with public authorities

Evo app

Over 640 services available

MSign app

140,212 average signatures per day

MPay app

41,397 average transactions per day

MIA instant payments

50,000 active users within 9 months after launch

Textile sub-sector
Overview

Moldova’s textile industry is represented mainly by the rug industry with an annual production of around 50 million EUR. The carpet manufacturers are primarily export-oriented, the two major ones being FloareCarpet and Moldabela.

Sold rugs by countries

Footwear, leather and accessories subsector
Overview

120+

Companies

4,000

Employees

3.5%

of total exports

The operators in this industry follow 3 types of business models

🇪🇺 Contract manufacturing for the EU market
🇲🇩 Production and distribution on the local market
🌏 Production and export to Central Asia and regional markets (such as Russia, Kazakhstan)

TAFL sector
Education

The TAFL specialisations in Higher Education Institutions

• Machines and Equipment Light Industry;
• Textile, Apparel, Footwear and Leather processing;
• Engineering in Textile and Leather products;
• Industrial Fashion Design;
• Technology of Fabrics.

Universities and Center of Excellence

• Technical University of Moldova;
• Pedagogical State University;
• Academy of Arts;
• Light Industry College Balti;
• Technological College Chisinau;
• Center for Excellence and Acceleration in Design and Technologies “ZIPhouse”

Labour
Costs

Moldova Average Monthly Wages in Manufacturing

Operating
Costs and Taxes

Moldova’s labor force combines competitive cost with high productivity, thus reflecting the key factor for a strong business performance.

Corporate Income tax

🇦🇱 Albania

15%

🇺🇦 Ukraine

18%

🇲🇩 Moldova

12%

🇷🇴 Romania

16%

🇵🇱 Poland

19%

Moldovan apparel’s sector
Main strengths

High quality

Short
lead times

Competitive
price

Flexibility
in order sizes

Read the whole research about TAFL sector in Moldova

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