MILAN — Suiting is back and so is the confidence of textile-makers.
On the heels of an exceptional 2022, exhibitors at the Milano Unica trade show, which closes here Thursday, were bullish about sustaining momentum well into 2023 despite market headwinds.
For spring 2024, tailoring fabrics hinged on lightweight blends, with linen adding a breezy effect, done in flamboyant solids drawing from the ‘50s and ‘60s flair for peacock elegance, while performance continued to be the undercurrent of carryovers.
On the womenswear front, which the fair is aiming to beef up as it fights to become the primary go-to for brands across categories looking for high-end textiles, mannish fabrics including crisp cotton and wool crepes were offered for lean business dressing, while high-tech iterations of silks and nylons nodded to women’s appetite for dressing up.
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“There is no space in the market for banal products; with so many forces contributing to shaping fashion today, research and innovation are paramount,” said Fabio Grazioli, brand manager of Tessuti di Sondrio, which posted sales of 47 million euros in 2022.
“I think the real divide is between suppliers who can really become partners to brands in the next four to five years,” he said.
This is particularly true for the high end of the market, which continues to be the target for the majority of the 394 exhibitors at Milano Unica. Fluctuations in costs are less of a worry for brands and suppliers with a premium positioning and the recent stabilization is giving further hope that margins will be left intact.
In 2022, the Italian textile sector generated revenues of 8.1 billion euros, up 32.4 percent versus a year earlier, and a 7.1 percent gain compared to 2019. Exports stood at 4.58 billion euros last year, up almost 32 percent, with key destination countries including China, Hong Kong, France, Germany and the U.S.
Pondering the year ahead, Stefano Albini, chief executive officer of Albini Group, said 2023 “could be a bit less brilliant because of inflation denting consumer confidence, but luxury players are all very positive and registered significant sales increases in 2022.”
In 2022, the company’s sales jumped 37 percent to 180 million euros, with 75 percent generated abroad. The cotton specialist managed to shoulder price increases for raw materials, which have yet to flatten when it comes to the premium long-fiber yarns it uses, thanks to its control over the entire supply chain and the newly set-up cotton plantation in Apulia, Italy, as part of a partnership with Gest.
It also relies on a strong footprint in the U.S., which is also the case for Vitale Barberis Canonico. CEO Alessandro Barberis Canonico touted the exceptional performances of luxury products in the country with currency exchange rates favoring the exports of textiles, too.
“Europe is less of a boon, but still performing well lifted by the American economy. The only real issue is China, especially in light of the latest COVID-19 wave, yet we expect revenge spending come spring,” he said.
Eurojersey’s managing director Andrea Crespi was more cautious about prospects, pointing to the two-pronged downsides of inflation in the U.S. and Europe. Whereas the latter could see a decline in internal consumption in the next months, the former country’s economic growth has had brands and retailers overstock textiles, leaving a question mark on how dynamic second half sales in the region will be.
“It’s been a complex year, marked by several hiccups in energy supply but the market acknowledged all the investments made in the past….It was not necessarily the best year performance-wise, but for sure the one when we did our very best,” said Ercole Botto Paola, CEO of Reda, whose revenues amounted to 106 million euros last year.
As streetwear slowly fades from the runways, giving space to modern interpretations of formalwear, suiting textile-makers rejoiced, channeling their creativity into breezy blends of wools, linens and even silk, reflecting the light and deconstructed trend offered by designer brands.
At Vitale Barberis Canonico, a resort vibe echoed in the peony pink and peacock blue suiting fabrics blending 21-micron and mohair wools, seersucker textiles done in wool or as blends of silk, linen and wool with the addition of Lycra. While working a palette of solids, digital printing was out in force for pinstriped fabrics as lightweight and swishy as silk.
According to creative director Francesco Barberis Canonico, as menswear silhouettes get roomier, firm fabrics are also gaining steam. To be sure, the spring collections reflected that renewed appetite for those materials.
At Reda, which has traditionally worked its know-how in updating tailoring for the always-on-the-go men’s pack with performance and stretch features, blends of 15.7-micron merino wools and luxurious yarns including silk and cashmere, or linen defined the concept of laid-back elegance that ruled at the fair.
CEO Botto Paola said ceremonies are still booming and boosting sales for formalwear, which is also increasingly catering to younger consumers tired of their hoodie and T-shirt look.
Piacenza 1733 had buttery cashmere fabrics, oftentimes paired with linen and silk, for a crisp and tactile effect. Last year, the woolen mill acquired fellow textile-maker Lanificio Fratelli Cerruti, bulking up its scale to around 90 million euros in 2022 and forging a group that also includes patternmaker Arte Tessile and Lanificio Piemontese. The company’s brand manager Vasiliy Piacenza said the M&A activity reflects an ambition to serve the market across the board, from the premium up to the hyper luxury positioning.
Elsewhere, performance-leaning tailoring fabrics were still high in demand as less fashion-oriented customers will be unlikely to trade their easy-care, wrinkle-free suits.
At Tollegno 1900, the signature 3DWool range came in a superstretch iteration with 25 percent of elasticity and a 98 percent recovery quality, flanked by the luxury line of ultrafine wools available in RWS versions, too. At Reda Active, a similar attitude informed the new range of performance merino wools paired with technical fibers and suited for casualwear.
Innovation stood at the core of Como, Italy-based Serates, too, in the use of fibers derived from coffee grains adding thermoregulatory features and graphene to enhance thermal conductivity, as well as photosensitive fabrics and outerwear-intended ripstop fabrics with water-repellent coatings. The collection struck a balance between the sportswear, activewear and fashion sides of the company’s business.
As it further experimented with its Sensitive Fabrics, Eurojersey showcased the application on activewear-leaning Burberry leggings and Moncler Grenoble’s après-ski range for men and women. A new garment-dyed piquè pattern stood out for its resemblance to cotton polos.
Tessuti di Sondrio ventured into similar territory, blending nylon with natural fibers such as cotton and linen aiming to take a spot in the growing premium casualwear segment.
Speaking at the opening ceremony, Milano Unica president Alessandro Barberis Canonico highlighted the fair’s ambition to increasingly tap into the womenswear market.
Brands had already been taking note of that business opportunity.
While Piacenza 1733’s womenswear offering hinged on voluptuous carded cashmere, at times woven in jacquard, Canepa’s newly installed art director Alessandra Taiana revamped the company’s heritage adding unexpected textiles, such as polyurethane and spiral Lurex, as well as new techniques including 3D overprinting, devoré piercing and the laying of thick pigments on the fabric via a waterless technique.
“It’s filled with different cues and inspirations catering to minimal and baroque clients,” she said, touting the Como-based silk specialist’s craftsmanship.
Albini’s women’s division accounts for 20 percent of its business and although the dedicated range — filled with pastels, stripes and earthy-toned cottons — is growing, the company’s CEO observed increase demand for mannish textiles. To this end, in addition to its signature cottons, the collection offered plenty of linen fabrics approved by the European Flex and Masters of Linen associations, with colorful stripes from the Thomas Mason range giving off Capri vibes.
Another shirting specialist, Tessuti di Sondrio, had new-gen fibers embedded in its spring collection with nettle and bamboo paired with linen to add a silky touch, and the use of Orange Fiber’s signature thread in combination with cotton and linen. It stepped up the sustainability game in the use of food- and bio-based pigments as well, using poppy flowers, tannins and pomegranate, for example.
An eco-champion, Manteco expanded its non-wool range, delivering OCS-certified cotton gabardines and poplins sourced from Tuscan plantations, and GRS-approved nylon and silk blends. “It’s about moving the needle of the conversation, having luxury players change their mindset toward recycled fabrics,” said CEO Marco Mantellassi.
Sustainability was also the undercurrent for the latest innovations in inner membranes and paddings, with Thermore highlighting Evodown Recycled, crafted from post-consumer rPET and based on a hybrid technology, made of millions of free fibers encapsulated by two high-density outer layers.
Interlining manufacturer Chargeurs PCC spotlighted its trademark Nativa Paddings made of sustainable wool and completely traceable throughout the supply chain.