Historic Textile Companies in India: Legacy, Decline, and Lessons

When you think of historic textile companies, large-scale Indian manufacturers that shaped the nation’s economy before globalization reshaped everything. Also known as legacy textile mills, these were the backbone of India’s industrial identity—producing cloth for millions, employing entire towns, and exporting globally before the rise of cheap imports and automation. These weren’t just factories. They were communities. In Ahmedabad, Surat, and Coimbatore, entire neighborhoods grew around spinning mills owned by families who built empires from cotton and looms.

One of the biggest names in this space is Reliance Textiles, a vertically integrated giant that absorbed smaller mills and now controls fiber, yarn, fabric, and retail under one roof. It didn’t just survive the industry’s collapse—it swallowed it. Then there’s Arvind Limited, a historic name that once dominated denim and branded fabrics, known for quality and innovation before global competition squeezed margins. These companies didn’t fail because they were lazy. They failed because they were slow. While China invested in automated looms and digital supply chains, many Indian mills kept using 1970s machines, paid higher wages, and ignored design trends.

The collapse wasn’t just about technology. It was policy. Export subsidies vanished. Tariffs on imported yarn dropped. Cheap synthetic fabrics from Bangladesh and Vietnam flooded the market. Meanwhile, labor unions resisted change, and younger workers moved to IT jobs or gig work. The result? Hundreds of mills shut down. Towns that once hummed with the sound of looms fell silent.

But here’s what’s often missed: the survivors didn’t just adapt—they reinvented. Reliance didn’t just make cloth. It became a retail and tech powerhouse. Arvind shifted from bulk production to premium denim brands. Some smaller players went niche—handloom revival, organic cotton, or custom prints for global designers. The lesson isn’t that old companies died. It’s that the ones that lasted stopped being textile producers and became brand builders, supply chain managers, and innovation hubs.

What you’ll find below are real stories from India’s manufacturing past and present. You’ll see how funding, policy, and technology turned giants into ghosts—and how a few managed to stay alive. No theory. No fluff. Just what actually happened, and what it means for anyone building something today.