Cashmere is the least forgiving fibre in a knitwear range — and few markets have an eye as well trained as Ireland, where the customer grew up around knitwear. The customer expects softness, the buyer expects consistency, and any shortcut in fibre grade or finishing shows immediately. We knit Grade A Inner Mongolia cashmere on Shima Seiki and Stoll flat-knit machines in Gaziantep, under your label, with the A.TR movement certificate prepared so your goods enter Ireland at 0% customs duty under the EU–Turkey Customs Union. One honest note up front: cashmere is not grown in Turkey — the fibre comes from Mongolia and Inner Mongolia. What Turkey contributes is the flat-knit machinery, skilled operators and finishing infrastructure that turn that fibre into a garment an Irish premium customer will pay for.

Cashmere Manufacturing Capabilities

01

Fibre Quality

Grade A Inner Mongolia cashmere sourced from spinners who document origin. Mill certificates and traceability documentation available on request — the supply-chain paper trail your retail buyers and your EU due-diligence answers increasingly expect.

02

Gauge & Construction

Cashmere runs at 12gg and 14gg for fine, close fabrics, with 10gg for midweight and stitch-pattern styles. 2-ply construction is the standard for fine-gauge cashmere knitwear — fitted crew necks, rollnecks and cardigans.

03

WHOLEGARMENT Option

Seamless cashmere on Shima Seiki 12gg and 14gg — no side seams at all. For cashmere this is a meaningful upgrade: removing seams removes bulk and improves drape at every wearing.

04

Private Label & Finishing

Your woven labels, hangtags and custom branding. Linking in-house for clean, flat seams on fully fashioned pieces, with piece-by-piece QC inspection before packing.

Pure Cashmere or Blend? An Honest Comparison

Pure cashmere is not automatically the right answer. Cashmere alone pills faster than blended yarns, and fibre cost per unit is meaningfully above merino equivalents. Blends are available for cost optimisation — and in some silhouettes they are simply the better fabric.

YarnTypical GaugeCharacter & Best Use
2-ply pure cashmere12–14ggClosest, most refined hand — fitted crew necks, rollnecks and cardigans at premium retail
Cashmere-merino 80/207–14ggA cashmere story with better durability and lower material cost — the common entry point for a first cashmere programme
Cashmere-merino 50/507–14ggReads closer to merino but with a noticeably softer finish — strong value at contemporary price points
Cashmere-silk (70/30, 85/15)12–14ggLustre, drape and slight sheen — best in drapey silhouettes like longline cardigans and relaxed pullovers

Fibre composition appears on the care label in line with the EU Textile Regulation. For fibres, gauges and finishing across the premium range, see luxury knitwear manufacturing for Irish brands.

How a Private Label Cashmere Programme Runs

01

Tech Pack & Yarn

Send a tech pack or a reference style. We confirm feasibility, recommend gauge and construction, and source the cashmere or blend yarn with origin documentation.

02

Sampling

Proto sample in 10–14 days from an approved tech pack. You review fit and hand, we revise, then a pre-production sample locks the standard for bulk.

03

Production & QC

Bulk runs in 45–60 days against the approved PP sample — knitted, linked and finished in Gaziantep with piece-by-piece inspection before packing under your label.

04

Shipping to Ireland

Ocean freight from Mersin reaches Dublin or Cork in roughly 12–18 days, sometimes via Northern European transshipment — versus four to six weeks from East Asia — with the A.TR movement certificate prepared as standard alongside full export documentation, quoted FOB or DDP and priced in euro.

The EU–Turkey Customs Union and Cashmere — the Honest Detail

Ireland is an EU member, and Turkey and the EU have operated a Customs Union since 1996 — so Turkish-made knitwear (HS 61) enters Ireland at a 0% customs duty when it ships with the A.TR movement certificate, while Chinese-origin jumpers pay the EU's MFN duty of around 12%. On cashmere the saving matters more than on any other fibre in your range: duty is charged on value, and cashmere carries the highest unit value in knitwear — so the zero rate goes straight to the landed cost of your most expensive pieces.

Because the fibre itself comes from Mongolia, brands sometimes assume a Turkish cashmere jumper cannot enter duty-free. Under the Customs Union it can — and the mechanics are simpler than under a free trade agreement. The A.TR movement certificate documents free circulation, not preferential origin: what matters is that the garment is manufactured in Turkey and in free circulation there, not where the raw fibre was grown. We prepare the A.TR as standard alongside full export documentation. Two honest caveats: there is still a customs border, and Irish VAT applies on import as normal — so have your freight forwarder or customs broker confirm the exact tariff line and charges for your style before you commit. For the full duty and lead-time breakdown against the default alternative, see our Turkey vs China comparison for Irish brands.

Why Irish Brands Source Cashmere from Turkey

Ireland knows knitwear — and that cuts both ways for a brand building a cashmere range: the customer's eye is trained, and the alternatives set a high bar. Ireland's own mills serve made-in-Ireland heritage positioning at the price points that provenance commands; Scotland and Italy run minimums and prices built for established luxury houses; and most of the world's cashmere volume is knitted in China. Turkey sits between: Turkish flat-knit factories run the same Shima Seiki and Stoll machinery as European luxury producers, at a 250-piece MOQ that heritage mills rarely match, with a duty position Chinese-origin goods can't touch — Turkish-made cashmere enters Ireland at 0% duty under the EU–Turkey Customs Union, while Chinese-origin jumpers pay around 12% MFN.

A 250-piece colourway is realistic for an Irish contemporary or premium brand positioned at genuine cashmere retail — at fast-fashion price points, cashmere is the wrong fibre regardless of where it's made, and we'll tell you so. Add a short, single-site supply chain — one factory, no subcontracting, documented fibre origin — and you have a sourcing story that is straightforward to stand behind with your customers and to write into your EU due-diligence answers.

FAQ: Cashmere Jumper Manufacturing

What grade of cashmere do you use?

We knit Grade A Inner Mongolia cashmere, sourced from spinners who document fibre origin. Mill certificates and origin documentation are available on request — the supply-chain paper trail that supports your EU due-diligence answers and the questions premium buyers now ask as standard.

What gauge is best for a cashmere jumper?

14gg produces the closest, most refined cashmere fabric for positioned luxury. 12gg is the most common production gauge for contemporary cashmere — a good balance of refinement and production speed. 10gg suits midweight or stitch-pattern cashmere where slight openness is intentional. WHOLEGARMENT seamless is available on 12gg and 14gg Shima Seiki machines.

Do you produce cashmere blends?

Yes. Cashmere-merino (80/20 or 50/50) improves durability and lowers material cost while keeping the soft hand, and cashmere-silk (typically 70/30 or 85/15) adds lustre and drape. Fibre composition is labelled in line with the EU Textile Regulation.

What is the MOQ for a private label cashmere programme?

Our standard MOQ is 250 pieces per colour, per size — realistic for Irish contemporary and premium brands positioned at genuine cashmere retail price points. Proto samples run in 10–14 days from an approved tech pack; bulk production runs in 45–60 days against the approved PP sample, quoted FOB or DDP and priced in euro.

Do cashmere jumpers from Turkey enter Ireland duty-free?

Yes, in the normal case. Ireland is an EU member, and under the EU–Turkey Customs Union (in force since 1996) Turkish-made knitwear enters the EU at 0% customs duty when it travels with the A.TR movement certificate, which we prepare as standard. Because the A.TR documents free circulation rather than preferential origin, a jumper knitted in Turkey from Mongolian cashmere yarn is not disqualified by where the fibre was grown. There is still a customs border, and Irish VAT applies on import as normal — so we'd always recommend confirming the exact tariff line and charges with your freight forwarder before you commit.

We're an Irish label — how does made-in-Turkey sit alongside Ireland's own knitwear heritage?

Honestly: if your brand's story is made-in-Ireland — Aran heritage, Irish mill provenance — we are not the right factory, and we'll tell you so. Where we fit is the own-label cashmere programme: your designs, knitted in Grade A cashmere on the same Shima Seiki and Stoll machinery European luxury producers use, at a 250-piece MOQ, entering Ireland duty-free. The two can sit side by side in a range — domestic heritage pieces and a contemporary own-label cashmere line produced with us.

Start your cashmere programme

Send a tech pack or a reference style. We'll return a capacity check, a yarn recommendation — pure cashmere or blend — and a sample timeline within one business day.

Related

→ Luxury Knitwear Manufacturer → WHOLEGARMENT Manufacturing → OEM Knitwear Manufacturer → Private Label Knitwear → Knitwear for Boutiques & Labels → Capabilities & Machinery → Turkey vs China for Irish Brands → Why Turkish Knitwear
We're an Irish label — how does made-in-Turkey sit alongside Ireland's own knitwear heritage?

Honestly: if your brand's story is made-in-Ireland — Aran heritage, Irish mill provenance — we are not the right factory, and we'll tell you so. Where we fit is the own-label cashmere programme: your designs, knitted in Grade A cashmere on the same Shima Seiki and Stoll machinery European luxury producers use, at a 250-piece MOQ, entering Ireland duty-free. The two can sit side by side in a range — domestic heritage pieces and a contemporary own-label cashmere line produced with us.

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