Logo Plants Seeds for Rebirth of Cotton Sector

By Ken Swanberg

Spring 2001

In early April, in the presence of President Hosni Mubarak, the Egyptian Minister of Economy and Foreign Trade signed an agreement between the Alexandria Cotton Exporters’ Association and two leading U.S. textile firms, WestPoint Stevens and Parkdale Mills. The agreement authorizes the firms to test the Egyptian cotton logo on their products in the United States and Canada.

Achieving industry-wide competitiveness depends on the ability to create new, or expand existing, demand. Introducing a logo to establish brand recognition is the essence of creating demand. But developing a logo for
Egyptian cotton proved to be no easy task.

Finding New—and Reclaiming Old—Markets

At the beginning of the Agricultural Policy Reform Program (APRP) in 1996, DAI inherited several benchmarks that were aimed at privatizing state-owned cotton ginning, trading, and spinning companies and liberalizing cotton pricing. Although these goals were admirable, Max Goldensohn, Chief of Party for APRP’s Reform, Design and Implementation (RDI) Unit, quickly realized how difficult it would be to achieve these goals in view of the erosion of demand for Egyptian cotton. Because privatizing a decaying industry would be a daunting task, it was decided the industry needed to be revitalized first. Studies were conducted to determine how to increase the competitiveness of Egyptian cotton. They all pointed to a need for finding and creating
new markets.

In 1997, at the Interstoff Textile Trade Fair in Hong Kong, industry leaders saw firsthand where they stood. They discovered Egypt was the only country at the trade fair that did not have an industry-wide association promoting its goods. They realized that going it alone in world markets was next to impossible. The seeds of an Egyptian cotton promotion association—and a logo—were planted.

The Egyptian cotton industry comprises growers, ginners, traders, spinners, weavers, dyers and finishers, and ready-made garment manufacturers. The whole industry united behind the efforts of the four lead spinners that attended the trade fair and created a registered association, the Egyptian Cotton Promotion Association, a year later. However, without financing, the association could not initiate activities immediately, and the market for Egyptian cotton continued to deteriorate, with an increasing loss of market share. Although some argued the decline was due entirely to poor pricing decisions on behalf of the Alexandria Cotton Exporters’ Association, many recognized that freeing up prices would not, by itself, resuscitate demand for Egyptian cotton, given the competition from other high-value cottons around the world.

The World’s Best

Jeffrey Silberman from the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City knew that Egyptian cottons were the best in the world. When he visited Egypt in 1998 on assignment with the Egyptian Exporters Association, he agreed that Egyptian cotton needed to be aggressively promoted. DAI hired Silberman to develop a logo. He began by having local graphic artists design prototypes, which he took back to his students at the Fashion Institute of Technology to test in New York City. His students videotaped people on the streets of New York and asked them what they knew about Egyptian cotton. The video was a smash hit at the EgyTex 2000 cotton and textile exhibition in Egypt. Silberman was then invited to develop the final design and launch the logo.

Andrea Costa, a graphic artist at Time-Warner, was asked to collaborate in the final design of the logo in consultation with WestPoint Stevens’ graphics department. WestPoint became involved when, in casual conversation with Silberman, WestPoint’s president suggested that the company adopt the logo and debut the logo on its home furnishings at its market week showcase in September 2000.

Although it took several months to iron out the legal agreement between the Alexandria Cotton Exporters’ Association, the Ministry of Economy and Foreign Trade, WestPoint Stevens, and Parkdale Mills, the buzz from the EgyTex 2000 exhibition and last fall’s market week showcase event started to ripple throughout Egypt and overseas. By early 2001, the ministry reported that 50 inquiries from Asia, Europe, and Australia had already been received about using the Egyptian cotton logo.

A surge in demand for Egyptian cotton products—men’s and women’s apparel, linens, home furnishings, and rugs—is already being felt across the board, with many manufacturers highlighting Egyptian cotton in prominent retail stores in the United States and Canada. The expectation is that the logo will result in a twofold increase in the export of cotton and cotton products from Egypt over the next five years.

Ken Swanberg, a DAI agricultural economist, was the privatization expert on APRP.