Marketing and the Turkey red trade war

Initially the pictures were non-committal, avoiding caste or creed allegiances in order to appeal to as many people as possible in a country rigidly divided in terms of race, faith and caste. By the end of the century Hindu themes dominated. This made economic sense as Hindus formed the largest and wealthiest sector of the population, as well as being the initial brokers for the cloth and the major sellers in the bazaars.

The labels shown on these pages represent the battle for supremacy in the Turkey red trade, which took place in the 19th century. The major players were the Lancashire and Vale of Leven dyers.

From the early 19th century companies identified their product by attaching black and white labels, bearing the company name, to each bale of fabric. These soon evolved into larger, coloured pictures, often measuring 7 x 10 inches. The company name appeared in three or four Indian languages, as well as English, with a space left at the bottom for the length of material to be entered.