When asked which brand they would pay a premium for, 61% said Egyptian Cotton, which respondents also named as their preferred option for towels and bedding at the survey, commissioned by the Cotton Egypt Association, which was conducted by the independent custom research arm of Progressive Business Media, HTT’s parent company. When consumers were asked to arrange a list of cotton brands in order of perceived quality 89% placed Egyptian Cotton as one of their top two choices. Pima made the top two in 45% of selections, followed by Turkish Cotton (35%), Supima (19%) and Sea Island Cotton (12%).

Tracy Saunders, home category technical manager at U.K. retailer John Lewis, has endorsed the program. He said that,” We support the measures being taken by the CEA to root out dishonest manufacturers and counterfeit goods from the supply chain and have welcomed the opportunity to work in collaboration with the CEA in setting out requirements to assure the provenance of Egyptian Cotton products.”

Khaled Schuman, executive director of the Cotton Egypt Association, said: “We are extremely proud of the thorough accreditation program we have created in association with Bureau Veritas. “The success of this is mirrored in the increase in retailer confidence we have experienced in the U.K.”

Wael Olama, chairman of the Cotton Egypt Association said ”This survey underlines the strength of the Egyptian Cotton brand in the mind of the consumer.”

The Cotton Egypt Association recently unveiled a new brand identity and digital platform to re-enforce Egyptian Cotton's stature. According to new consumer research,Egyptian Cotton is the most recognized cotton brand in the United States. Egyptian Cotton was also the name most people associated with quality and the cotton fiber they said they were prepared to pay a premium for.

It found that while 86% of those questioned couldn’t name a brand of cotton, among those who could, 95% cited Egyptian Cotton, with the remaining 5% naming Pima.

52% of consumers said texture was the most important consideration when buying a cotton product and only 2% considered products being manufactured in the USA as an important factor, when asked to rate the importance of listed qualities