Many of us often get confused and find almost very similar meanings. There are many basic and technical differences between Textiles and Apparel. Textile is a very broad term that includes Fiber, yarn, sewing thread, and fabric. Textile means the whole thing from fiber to fashion, apparel limited to cloth only. Apparel is a stitching process that makes clothes. Textile is any Cloth that has several uses lining Filter casing etc, Whereas Apparel is a dress, Sari, Skirt, Pant, Coat, etc. Most apparel is made of Cloth. But leather apparel is also made like Jackets.
Basic differences between Textile and Apparel
The textile industry is a large and diverse field, with many different segments such as spinning, weaving, knitting, finishing, and nonwoven. Another special part of textile is technical textile, (home textile, medical textile, etc.) . The textile industry is responsible for producing raw materials, yarns, fabrics, and finished textile products. The apparel industry is focused on designing, sewing, producing, and marketing clothing and accessories.
The textile industry has a longer history than the apparel industry, with textiles dating back to ancient civilizations. Textile manufacturing was one of the first industries to be industrialized, with the mechanization of spinning and weaving in the 18th and 19th centuries. The apparel industry, however, did not begin to take shape until the 20th century.
Textile manufacturing involves a series of processes, including spinning, weaving, knitting, and finishing. Spinning is the process of twisting fibers together to create yarn, which is then woven or knitted into fabric. Weaving is the process of interlacing two sets of yarns at right angles to create a fabric, while knitting is the process of looping yarns together to create a fabric. Finishing is the process of treating the fabric to give it certain properties like wrinkle resistance or water repellency.
Difference between Textile and Apparel
| Serial No: | Textile | Apparel |
| 1 | Textile is a broad term including everything and every sub-type of Textile from fibers to the final product | Apparel is anything made from textiles being used for wearing or covering human bodies |
| 2 | Textiles cover vast areas of the constituents like fibers, yarns, stitching yarns, fabrics manufacturing, and processing areas also. | It covers clothes only |
| 3 | Textile is a big thing; apparel is a subpart of that. | Apparels are one of the categories of textiles. |
| 4 | Textiles are made into apparel. | Apparel is made of textiles. |
| 5 | Textile covers all types of fabric used for apparel | Apparel covers all types of garments that are made |
| 6 | Textiles are Conventional Textiles, Geo Textiles, Technical Textiles, Medical Textiles, Protective Textiles, and many more. | Apparel is a dress, Sari, Skirt, Pants, shirt, Coat, etc. |
In recent years, the textile and apparel industries have become increasingly globalized, with production and sourcing taking place all over the world. This has led to increased competition and a focus on cost-cutting, as well as concerns about working conditions and environmental impacts in the countries where textiles and apparel are produced. Asian countries are exporting apparel to Europe and America continent as getting products at a cheaper price. They are good at textiles too. As per the above discussion, both terms are related to each other, one is the end part (finished part) of the other.