Fine-gauge cashmere, cashmere-wool and cashmere-alpaca blends knitted in Gaziantep for Canadian brands building a genuinely cold-climate premium range — with a 250-piece MOQ and an honest look at where Turkey sits against China and the EU on price.
Cashmere is not grown in Turkey. The raw fibre comes from goats in Mongolia and Inner Mongolia, spun into yarn mostly in Italy, Scotland or China, then imported by Turkish flat-knit factories to be knitted. What Turkey contributes is the knitting infrastructure — Shima Seiki and Stoll machines, trained operators, finishing close to European mill standards without European mill pricing. For a Canadian brand sourcing at a 250-piece MOQ, that's a practical entry point — provided the trade-offs are on the table from the start.
Standard fine-gauge construction, run at 12gg or 14gg for a close, lightweight fabric. Suits fitted crewnecks at premium retail. Fibre cost is the limiting factor; MOQ is still 250/colour.
Merino into cashmere (80/20, 50/50) improves durability — pure cashmere pills faster — and softens material cost. Blend ratio must appear on the Canadian care label.
Fine-gauge cashmere alone isn't built for a Canadian January. Cashmere with lambswool at 7–10gg produces a warmer, bulkier hand — closer to functional cold-weather wear.
Alpaca adds warmth-to-weight efficiency without cashmere's price tag; mohair adds loft and halo texture. Both blend well with wool at 5–8gg for chunkier pieces.
Fine gauge (12–14gg) cashmere reads as elevated and works well as a layering piece — right for brands at $200+ retail who need refinement more than raw warmth. But a large share of the Canadian market needs the opposite: knitwear that functions as outerwear-adjacent, not just an indoor layer. That's where mid-gauge (7–10gg) cashmere-wool or alpaca-wool blends earn their place, trading fineness for real insulating bulk. WHOLEGARMENT construction (Shima Seiki, zero side-seam) is worth considering at either gauge — it removes seam bulk, which matters more as fabric weight goes up. See our luxury knitwear manufacturing page for the fuller range.
Price is the first question every Canadian buyer asks, so here it is straight: Turkish cashmere FOB pricing typically sits above Chinese cashmere, which benefits from larger-scale yarn contracting, and below Italian or Scottish mill pricing. We won't claim to undercut China — we don't, and shouldn't try to. The case for Turkey is quality, gauge range and MOQ flexibility at a mid-market price, not the lowest unit cost on the table.
| Factor | Turkey | China | Italy / Scotland (EU) |
|---|---|---|---|
| FOB price tier | Mid — between China and the EU | Generally lower | Highest |
| Typical MOQ | 250 / colour, size | Often 500–1,000+ | Often lower, at EU cost |
| Canadian import duty | Standard MFN — no Canada–Türkiye FTA | Standard MFN — no Canada–China FTA | Often duty-free, qualifying origin under CETA |
| Ocean transit | ~4–5 weeks, Mersin/İskenderun to Montreal/Halifax | Typically longer — trans-Pacific plus onward routing | Shortest — direct Atlantic crossing |
Indicative. GST/HST and clearance costs apply on top of duty regardless of origin. CETA eligibility depends on qualifying rules of origin — confirm with a licensed customs broker.
Canada's Fighting Against Forced Labour and Child Labour in Supply Chains Act (Bill S-211) put supply-chain reporting on the agenda for many Canadian retailers from 2024 onward. A single-site Gaziantep factory is structurally simpler to document than a multi-tier Asian supply chain — we provide mill-level information on request, and for cashmere, origin documentation from our yarn suppliers (Mongolian and Inner Mongolian fibre, processed outside Xinjiang). OEKO-TEX certified yarns from accredited suppliers are standard; GOTS and GRS options are available on request. None of this is unique to Turkey — a well-audited Chinese or Italian supplier can offer the same. What's honest to say is that a shorter, single-site supply chain is easier to document. See our private label manufacturing page for how we structure OEM documentation.
At 5,000+ units of a standard-gauge cashmere-blend crewneck, Chinese scale-yarn pricing can beat Turkey by enough that quality and MOQ advantages don't close the gap. Run the numbers on both before committing.
If positioning requires an Italian or Scottish origin on the label — and retail price supports it — no Turkish or Chinese factory substitutes for that. CETA's duty-free access strengthens the case further.
China's yarn-supplier network for silk and speciality performance fibres runs deeper than Turkey's. If a design needs a fibre Turkish spinners don't stock, flag it early.
No. Canada has no free trade agreement with Turkey, so standard MFN duty plus GST/HST applies — the same as most non-FTA countries, including China. If your decision is duty-driven, a CETA-eligible EU supplier is the honest alternative. If it's quality, MOQ and traceability at a mid-market price, Turkey earns its place.
250 pieces per colour, per size. One style in 3 colourways and 5 sizes runs to 3,750 pieces total. Cashmere doesn't get a lower minimum; the fibre cost is simply higher per unit.
Yes — a cashmere-wool or alpaca-wool blend at 7–10gg produces a genuinely warm, substantial garment, closer to outerwear-adjacent than a fine-gauge layering piece. Tell us the intended end use early.
We pass through our yarn suppliers' origin documentation — for cashmere, Mongolian and Inner Mongolian sourcing outside Xinjiang. We're not a certifying body; we source from accredited spinners and forward what they provide.
Send your tech pack, reference sample or a rough concept, along with your target gauge and retail price. We'll advise honestly on construction and quote ex-works so you can build your own landed-cost model — duty included, no surprises.