Sialkot Manufacturers: A Buyer's Guide to Pakistan's Export City
What Sialkot makes, how its exporters work, and how to source from the city with confidence.
Sialkot is a city of a few million people in northeast Punjab, close to the Indian border, and one of the most export-focused places in Pakistan. The Sialkot Chamber of Commerce and Industry said in its 2018-19 annual report that the city earned over $2 billion a year from exports across sports goods, surgical instruments and leather products. More recent local estimates put the figure above $2.5 billion.
What Sialkot makes
- Sports goods. Footballs are the best known, including match balls for the FIFA World Cup made by Forward Sports. Read how Sialkot came to make the World Cup ball.
- Surgical, dental and beauty instruments. Pakistan's trade authority says 99% of the country's dental, veterinary and beauty instruments are made by more than 2,500 companies in Sialkot. See our Made Here story on surgical scissors.
- Leather goods. Gloves, garments and accessories, made largely as value-added finished products for export.
A city that builds its own infrastructure
Sialkot's business community is known for paying for what it needs. Sialkot International Airport was conceived, financed and built by local businesspeople rather than the state, through a company set up in 2001; Profit reports that members of the Chamber contributed the equity. The airport's first commercial flight landed in late 2007 (Dawn). For buyers, that means direct air links and exporters who are used to shipping on deadline.
How sourcing usually works
- Shortlist through the Chamber, trade fairs or referrals. Many Sialkot firms supply well-known brands under the buyer's label.
- Request samples and a costed quote. Expect to pay for custom samples.
- Check certifications that matter for your market, such as quality management and, for medical devices, the registrations your regulator requires.
- Visit or commission an inspection before the first large order.
- Agree payment terms. Letters of credit are common for first orders; open account terms usually come with a track record.
Coming next
The Sialkot File, the first of The City Files: one exporter's story from workshop to world market. Sialkot exporters who would like to be considered can write to editor@scalepakistan.pk. Our stories are never for sale.