South Korean textiles giant Hyosung will construct a spandex factory in India by 2019 as part of its global expansion strategy, the company said Tuesday.

The latest agreement was made last week when Cho Hyun-joon, Hyosung chairman and CEO, met with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Mumbai, India, following a meeting with Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc in Vietnam earlier this month.

“India is one of the world’s largest textile markets, and we expect the consumer market size to grow at an outstanding pace as well. Hyosung hopes to grow together with the Indian economy,” said Cho.

Welcoming the company‘s decision, Modi said, “South Korea is playing a major role in India’s ‘Make in India’ policy that is leading high growth. We expect Hyosung’s investment to strengthen the country‘s future value and industrial base.”

Hyosung will first invest $100 million to build the facility on 40 hectares in Maharashtra state, western India. About half the textiles manufactured in India originate from the region.

India’s rapidly expanding textiles market is expected to grow over 12 percent annually to be worth some $200 million in 2020.

Once the factory starts production in 2020, Hyosung will focus on bolstering presence in the high value premium market with aims to account for 70 percent of India’s textiles market.

Hyosung says it is confident it will soon post high profits based on product quality and marketing. 

Since entering India in 2007, Hyosung has been widening is business portfolio there, ranging from textiles to ultra-high voltage circuit breakers.

Hyosung’s spandex brand Creora currently accounts for some 60 percent of India‘s spandex market, the company said.

A significant portion of its fabrics are sold to make Muslim clothing, lingerie, sportswear, denim and diapers.

In terms of sales, Hyosung’s circuit breaker factory in Pune City, Maharashtra, and its India corporate body together flagged over $300 million last year, the company said.

After its 2007 entry into Indian capital New Delhi, Hyosung established a corporate body there in 2012.

Cho, who assumed the head office a year ago, participated in the Intertextile Shanghai Apparel Fabrics trade show in October, and followed that up with the visits to Vietnam and India this month in efforts to boost the company’s global network. 

By Kim Bo-gyung (lisakim425@heraldcorp.com)