The Union des Industries Textiles (UIT) was founded in 1900 and represents and defends the interests of the French textile industry. It has 2200 members, mainly small and medium-sized enterprises (spinning, weaving, knitting, finishing).
The companies come from the application markets of clothing, home textiles, medical textiles, protective equipment, aeronautics, construction, and packaging.
UIT’s priorities are to support the restructuring of the textile industry in France, to strengthen national coordination with its growth engines and to improve the image of a sector that is innovative while respecting people and the environment.
UIT has three main missions
1- Build a favorable environment for the French textile industry
UIT works with all stakeholders (public authorities, economic actors, opinion leaders) to define a favorable legislative and regulatory environment in all areas (economic, social, fiscal and environmental). To achieve this, it benefits from the support of its experts, both internally and within its network. Its intervention is carried out at several levels:
• National level, UIT defends the industrial competitiveness of French companies and helps them conquer new markets, particularly through innovation;
• European level, UIT promotes a genuine European industrial policy and supports all initiatives likely to help SMEs grow;
• internationally, UIT negotiates cooperation agreements and elaborates an ambitious export plan with its partners every year. It forges relations with major professional associations of the major textile countries.
2- Offering a daily service adapted to the needs of its members
Thanks to its knowledge of the sector, UIT provides direct support and assistance to its members in the form of an adapted service: practical guides (in collaboration with public or private partners), technical expertise (fact sheets), provision of key figures and statistics, publication of monthly and annual information.
As a social partner, UIT leads the social dialogue in the sector and contributes to building a very active social policy in the field of labor relations and in the field of initial and continuing career development training.
UIT also ensures a dynamic network through collaborative work with textile institutions (Institut Français de la Mode, competitiveness clusters, universities, etc.) and federations from all sectors. It regularly mobilizes and renews its support and partnerships to adapt the actions to be carried out within the socio-economic context.
3- Contribute to the attractiveness of the textile industry
Administered by textile industry leaders, UIT regularly redesigns the strategy of the profession: societal challenges, environmental responsibility, technological revolution, international competition are all subjects on which it must respond to promote and defend the values of the sector.
Positioning itself and making itself visible as a key member in the French industry, as effective in traditional know-how as in cutting-edge innovation, is also a commitment of the UIT to attract young talent, forge new partnerships and win new markets.
