14 Low-Investment Business Ideas in Textile Industry

While garment manufacturing and retail are common choices, many niche businesses offer higher profit margins, lower competition, and long-term growth potential. 

This blog will walk you through some unique and practical business ideas in the textile sector, including the kind of customer you would attract, how much investment you’d need, and what kind of profit margins to expect.

Niche Textile Business Ideas 

The Indian Textile Industry is huge and contributes a lot to the economy. This industry can be classified into two broad sectors. 

Organised Sector: Large scale Mills, factories and export houses with organized production system. 

Unorganized Sector: Handlooms, small-scale production, and home-based business. This sector is a high employment sector for artisans and entrepreneurs. 

Let us take a look at some high-potential business ideas in the textile industry with their financial aspects.

Textile Upcycling/Recycling 

Textile upcycling or recycling is a unique business idea that gives old fabrics, clothes, and factory scraps a new life instead of dumping them. You can recycle them into new fabric, bags, quilts, rugs, or even fashion clothes. 

To get started, you need to acquire reliable supplies of second-hand fabrics and the basics for processing and design, including a small staff that will sort, cut, and sew these used fabrics together into your product lines. Then you can sell through online platforms, boutiques, or by cooperating with fashionable companies which adopt environmentally friendly textiles. 

Target Market: Sustainable fashion companies, consumers interested in environment protection, internet and wholesalers market. 

Investment: ₹5-10 lakh (collection, processing machine, marketing and initial raw material). 

Profit Margin: 30-50% (depending on the product and market demand).

Tailor-Made Upholstery Services 

Many homeowners want to give a face-lift to their old sofas, chairs, or headboards with new fabrics and designs rather than purchasing a new set of furniture. Starting with a simple workshop, sewing machines, fabric stock and skilled labourers for upholstery, you can give them the choices of materials, textures, and patterns. Regular business can be generated from marketing on social media, home decoration exhibitions, and partnerships with furniture stores. This is a low-risk business with high returns because custom furniture is always in demand. 

Target Market: Homeowners, interior designers, hotels, office spaces, and furniture stores. 

Investment: ₹3-7 lakh (for fabric inventory, sewing machines, tools, and marketing). 

Profit Margin: 40-60% as the labour and material costs are under control and people pay more for custom things.

Technical Textile Production 

Technical textiles are produced for specialized industries such as healthcare, automobiles, sports, and defense. These are used for medical bandages, car seats, industrial safety equipment, fireproof clothes, and even military uniforms. 

This is a capital-intensive business, but the returns are very long-term because industries require high-performance textiles that are durable and safe. The returns are tremendous if you get bulk contracts. 

Target Market: Hospitals, automobile manufacturers, industrial safety suppliers, military and defense. 

Investment: ₹20-50 lakh (including machines, raw materials, licenses, and quality control). 

Profit Margin: 20-40% depending on product type and bulk orders.

Environmentally Friendly Dyeing and Printing

The biggest advantage of this business is its growing demand and high pricing power. In the beginning, you will need a dyeing and printing setup, natural sources of colour, skilled workers, and water treatment systems to ensure sustainability in the process. Marketing your brand via Instagram, craft fairs, and boutique collaborations will help in setting up the brand. 

Target Market: Sustainable clothing brands, boutique designers, handmade fabric buyers, and international exporters. 

Investment: ₹8-12 lakh (for extracting natural dyes, printing equipment, and advertisement). 

Profit Margin: 30-45% because eco-friendly products command a premium price.

Handicraft and Handloom Production

This is an excellent business venture for anyone who is enthusiastic about the traditional arts. You can work with weavers and artisans in the local community to produce handloom sarees, shawls, bedsheets, or handcrafted textile products like cushion covers and wall hangings and sell them at exhibitions, through online marketplaces such as Amazon, Etsy, and Instagram, or in boutique stores. 

Target Market: Handloom lovers, eco-conscious buyers, export markets, and boutique stores.

Investment: ₹5-12 lakh (for raw materials, weaving equipment, skilled labour, and marketing).

Profit Margin: 40-60% especially for quality handcrafted goods.

Manufacturing Accessories 

Bags, belts, scarves, and hats will always sell. The business does not require much in terms of equipment and a very small workshop to start; you can use various materials such as cotton, jute, leather, or synthetic fabrics to give an affordable, luxurious, or stylish feel. That sort of customization allows for a high-end price. 

Target Market: Fashion-conscious consumers, online shoppers, boutique stores, and gift shops. 

Investment: ₹3-8 lakh (on raw material, sewing machine and online marketing). 

Profit Margin: 50-70% as accessories are high-margin products.

Alteration of Garments 

Start your business at home or a small shop by shortening pants, adjusting the dress size, repairing zippers, or redesigning old clothes. If you have tailoring skills, you have to put very little into this business, just a sewing machine, some tools, and basic marketing for people in your area. You can also share with dry cleaners, fashion boutiques, or bridal stores to get more clients. 

Target Market: People, working people, speciality shops, dry cleaners, and wedding gown shops. 

Investment: ₹50,000-2 lakh for a sewing machine, space, and advertising. 

Profit Margin: 40-60% since alteration charges are mostly for labour, hence very profitable.

Designer Blouse Making 

You can start this business if you have basic tailoring skills and design sense. A sewing machine, fabric materials, design tools, and an online or offline marketing strategy will help you start your business from home. You may also offer door-to-door stitching services, whereby clients pick their designs and fabric sitting in their homes. 

Target Market: Women who wear sarees, wedding shoppers, boutique shoppers, and working professionals. 

Investment: ₹1-3 lakh for a sewing machine, fabrics, embroidery tools, and advertising. 

Profit Margin: 50-80% since custom-made blouses sell at high prices and the material costs are very low.

Cloth Bag Manufacturing 

You can manufacture shopping bags, tote bags, drawstring pouches, and promotional bags from companies and retailers. Cotton is the most dominant material, then jute, and canvas for that matter. You can further add custom print, embroidery, or branding into the product lines to sell those products at even higher prices. Cloth bags market well online with supply in wholesale quantities to all the retailers and grocery stores across the country which seek custom packages. 

Target Market: Retail stores, supermarkets, event organizers, corporate clients, and ecologically conscious consumers. 

Investment: ₹3-8 lakh (for sewing machines, fabric, printing and packaging). 

Profit Margin: 40-60% for non-specialty as for custom-designed or branded bags.

Surgical Cotton Manufacturing 

The manufacturing process for raw cotton is cleaning, carding, bleaching, and drying, making it very absorbent. You will require some basic machinery such as a cotton carding machine, bleaching equipment, and packaging tools. This business needs proper licensing and quality control because it is related to medical-grade products. 

Target Market: Hospitals, pharmacies, nursing homes, beauty salons, first-aid kit suppliers. 

Investment: ₹10-20 lakh for machinery, raw cotton, and licensing. 

Profit margin: 30-50% (depending on production scale and distribution channels).

Production of Jute Products 

Jute shopping bags, gift bags, office bags, rugs, and handicrafts can be manufactured. Raw materials for the production of these products are easy to source with government support given to jute farming and processing. You can scale up using export channels, e-commerce sites, and wholesale markets. 

Target Market: Eco-friendly consumers, corporate gifting, retail stores, and export markets. 

Investment: ₹5-12 lakh (for raw materials, stitching and printing machines, and marketing). 

Profit Margin: 40-70% especially for custom-designed and export-quality products.

Sewing Thread Reels Manufacturing 

It involves spinning, dyeing and reeling of thread into reels. The types of threads include cotton, polyester, silk, nylon, and many others for sewing various requirements. You can supply tailoring shops, garment factories, wholesalers, and craft stores. Selling directly to bulk buyers can ensure regular business. Finding the right suppliers for raw materials is very important in this business. 

Target Market: Tailors, garment manufacturers, wholesalers, craft stores, and DIY sewing enthusiasts. 

Investment: ₹8-15 lakh (for raw materials, spinning, dyeing, and winding machines). 

Profit Margin: 30-50% for the higher range in premium or specialty threads.

Production of Acrylic Blanket

Production includes acrylic fiber weaving or knitting, dyeing, and finishing. You can produce plain, printed, or customized blankets to suit diversified customer requirements. By selling through wholesalers, online marketplaces, and direct supply to hotels, you may be sure of bulk sales and increased profitability. If you expand this, then the small-scale tailoring unit can also be initiated along with manufacturing. 

Target Market: Households, hotels, hospitals, exporters, and home décor stores. 

Investment: ₹15-30 lakh for fabric processing machines, dyeing units, and packaging. 

Profit Margin: 40-60% (higher for premium or export-quality blankets).

Garments Knitting Business

You can make for local markets, boutique fashion brands, and even export to colder regions. Using automatic knitting machines will help accelerate the production process and enhance profitability. Sales through boutiques, online platforms, and direct wholesale will increase your business. Linking up with wholesale textile markets or B2B platforms will enable you to source the best materials at competitive rates. 

Target Market: Winter wear buyers, boutique cloth stores, shoppers online, and exporters.

Investment: ₹5-12 lakh for knitting machines, yarn, and packaging. 

Profit Margin: 50-70% (especially for customized and handmade knitwear). 

The textile industry in India is full of opportunities, and the right business idea can turn into a profitable venture with proper planning.

So, which business idea excites you the most?