Sep 8, 2:01 PM
Subsidising Style: Uzbekistan’s Push to Export Brands
Tashkent wants to turn local craftsmanship into global brand equity—with an €860 million state nudge.
Creating a global brand requires more than state decree, yet governments in developing economies rarely resist the temptation to engineer commercial success from above. Uzbekistan, whose exports surged 24 percent in 2025 to roughly €29 billion alongside a 6.8 percent rise in industrial output according to official statistics, is now attempting to leap from basic manufacturing to high-margin branding.
The momentum is undeniable at the private level. Local entrepreneurs and creative ventures have begun reinterpreting traditional techniques, such as silk-and-cotton adras weaving, for modern consumer taste. Commercial initiatives like Teplo Store have evolved from hosting niche design markets into platforms supporting more than 200 independent creators, even testing international demand via pop-up retail in London's Soho.
Yet crossing borders reveals the stark limits of domestic success. Survey data presented by President Shavkat Mirziyoyev highlights deep structural hurdles: 40 percent of local exporters report difficulties finding overseas clients, while 36 percent flounder against foreign certification standards and quality norms. Over a third cite gaps in marketing expertise and financial export instruments.
The state response to these classic market frictions is predictably dirigiste. Tashkent has unveiled an €860 million export support system, centred on a government-managed Export Navigator designed to identify 100 potential export goods and brief producers on foreign tariffs and logistics. To accelerate progress, the government is offering targeted subsidies of up to €43,000 for brand promotion, while promising to cover half the cost of hiring foreign marketing consultants and 80 percent of advisory fees for international tenders.
Whether state funding can manufacture international brand equity is a different matter. Subsidising foreign warehousing and government-curated product lists may temporarily insulate firms from regulatory costs, but lasting export growth depends on product quality and consumer demand, not bureaucratic navigation systems. Uzbekistan’s emerging entrepreneurs may find that while state aid eases the initial journey abroad, genuine global standing cannot be bought through public subsidies.
Written by Thorben Thiede thorben.thiede@alpineweekly.com
