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Logistics Shaping India’s Textiles

Logistics Shaping India’s Textiles

Divya SJanuary 21, 2026 6:57 am

Ajay Rao says as consumption spreads across cities and channels, the ability to place inventory closer to demand, without losing control over compliance, cost, or service quality, will define operational excellence.

India’s textile and apparel industry is entering a defining decade. According to the “Textile Industry’s Amrit Kaal: Roadmap for $350 Billion Market by 2030” report, India’s textile and apparel market was valued at billion in 2022, with the domestic market contributing $125 billion and exports $40 billion. The sector continues to play a foundational role in India’s industrial and employment landscape. What makes the current moment particularly significant is the scale of ambition ahead. With a projected growth trajectory of nearly 10 per cent CAGR, the industry is expected to reach $350 billion by 2030.

This growth is unfolding within an increasingly competitive global environment. The global textile and apparel market was valued at approximately $1.7 trillion in 2022 and is expected to grow steadily toward $2.37 trillion by 2030, while the global textile and apparel trade is projected to expand from $910 billion in 2021 to nearly $1.2 trillion by the end of the decade. For India, these numbers underline a clear reality: opportunity exists at scale, but capturing it will depend less on capacity creation alone and more on how efficiently the industry can move goods across domestic and international markets — particularly in a consumption environment increasingly shaped by D2C brands and digital-first retail models.

This is where logistics plays a crucial role in strategic importance.

Logistics as the critical enabler of the next growth phase

For decades, textile and apparel logistics in India were designed around volume and predictability. Large production runs moved through centralised warehouses, supported by linear distribution networks with limited emphasis on speed or flexibility. That paradigm has decisively shifted.

Today’s supply chains for this industry must support fragmented demand, shorter product cycles, and omnichannel distribution. This shift has been significantly accelerated by the rapid rise of D2C textile and apparel brands, which are moving closer to end consumers, launching more frequent collections, and competing as much on delivery experience as on product design. As a result, logistics is no longer evaluated purely on cost efficiency; it has become a critical lever shaping market responsiveness and customer experience, transforming it from an operational support function into the strategic backbone of the industry’s expansion.

Warehousing, in particular, has taken on a more central role, evolving from passive storage points into active fulfilment engines that anchor both mid-mile and last-mile operations. Modern facilities are designed to handle high SKU density, mixed-order processing, and complex reverse logistics, while also enabling faster order dispatch to support tighter delivery timelines. Integrated warehouse and order management systems, selective automation, real-time visibility tools, and last-mile platforms are allowing brands and their logistics partners to operate with greater control, predictability, and delivery reliability right through to the end customer.

For textile and apparel players, capable 3PL partnerships are increasingly critical. Serving as the operational bridge between manufacturers and brands, they enable scalable distribution, help manage seasonal volatility, enhance demand predictability, and support geographic expansion without tying up capital in fixed infrastructure.

Demand shifts are redefining fulfilment networks

As logistics capabilities improve, they are converging with a fundamental shift in textile and apparel consumption patterns. While metropolitan markets continue to anchor value, incremental volume growth is increasingly coming from Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities. Expanding digital access, rising aspirations, and deeper e-commerce penetration have widened the consumption base, making fulfilment reach, delivery performance, and service reliability as critical as product differentiation.

The rise of D2C textile brands has further intensified this shift. As brands engage customers directly, logistics has become integral to the brand experience. Last-mile performance—covering delivery timelines, shipment visibility, delivery flexibility, and returns handling—now plays a decisive role in shaping customer perception, loyalty, and repeat purchase behaviour. In this environment, logistics innovation directly influences customer lifetime value rather than functioning purely as a cost lever.

These changes are reshaping fulfilment strategies. Centralised distribution models are increasingly inadequate for serving a geographically dispersed customer base with consistent service levels. As a result, regional warehousing and distributed fulfilment networks, often enabled by 3PL partners, are becoming essential to balance service quality, cost efficiency, and operational reliability.

The impact is most pronounced in high-growth segments such as lifestyle fashion, wellness-oriented textiles, and allied consumer categories, where shorter product cycles and higher order frequencies demand tighter inventory control and faster replenishment. Returns management, including RTO reduction, has therefore emerged as a strategic priority. Advanced logistics frameworks now support proactive RTO reduction and structured refurbishment of returned products, transforming reverse logistics into a driver of sustainability, profitability, and customer trust.

Structural constraints that must be addressed

Despite strong momentum, several structural gaps could limit the industry’s ability to fully capitalise on the opportunity.

One persistent challenge is the limited integration of process innovation across manufacturing, warehousing, and distribution. While product innovation has advanced, logistics processes often remain siloed. Greater collaboration between textile manufacturers, warehouse operators, and logistics partners is necessary to unlock end-to-end efficiency and reduce friction across the supply chain.

Skill development is another critical constraint. As warehouses adopt automation, data-driven planning, and stricter compliance processes, the demand for trained manpower continues to rise. Sustained investment in training, safety, and productivity-linked incentives is essential to maintain performance, particularly during peak demand periods.

Compliance expectations are also intensifying. Marketplaces and global buyers are enforcing higher standards around tagging accuracy, traceability, and claims management. These requirements place greater responsibility on warehouses and 3PL partners to maintain process discipline and audit readiness. For exporters, gaps in logistics execution can directly undermine credibility, even when product quality meets global standards.

Fulfilment models evolving with buyer expectations

In response to these pressures, logistics-led innovation is beginning to redefine operating models across the textile and apparel ecosystem.

Appointment-based B2B deliveries, smaller purchase-order fulfilment, and faster delivery commitments are becoming increasingly common as brands prioritise inventory agility and speed to market. Same-day and next-day delivery capabilities, supported by regional warehouses, are no longer niche offerings; they are fast becoming baseline expectations in key consumption centres.

Omnichannel fulfilment represents another structural shift. Physical retail assets are increasingly integrated into fulfilment networks as inventory nodes, supported by central warehouses and 3PL-managed distribution. This convergence improves inventory utilisation, shortens delivery timelines, and creates a seamless buying and return experience across online and offline touchpoints, particularly in high-velocity fashion categories.

Underpinning these changes is the growing adoption of AI-led planning, predictive analytics, and real-time visibility tools. These technologies enable logistics networks to move from reactive firefighting during festive peaks to proactive capacity planning and demand anticipation, and intelligent last-mile routing that enhances delivery success rates and customer satisfaction.

The road ahead: Aligning scale with global leadership

As India’s textile and apparel industry looks toward 2026 and beyond, the path to global leadership will depend on how effectively logistics is embedded into strategic decision-making.

The priority must be continued investment in intelligent warehouse infrastructure that supports automation, flexibility, and accuracy at scale. The second is deeper collaboration with capable 3PL partners to build resilient, geographically distributed networks that can absorb demand volatility, while delivering superior last-mile customer experience for D2C and omnichannel brands.

Finally, the industry must embrace distributed fulfilment supported by centralised visibility and governance. As consumption spreads across cities and channels, the ability to place inventory closer to demand, without losing control over compliance, cost, or service quality, will define operational excellence.

If these priorities are addressed with discipline and foresight, logistics will move beyond being an enabler of scale. It will become the decisive force that allows India’s textile and apparel industry to convert opportunity into sustained global leadership well before the end of the decade.

References:

About the author:

Ajay Rao is the Founder of Emiza. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum.

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