MILAN — As inflation, geopolitical tensions, wars and an export slowdown affect the Italian fashion industry, especially small and medium-size companies and the manufacturing pipeline, the sector’s associations are rallying together seeking more government support.
Following the fifth meeting of the so-called Table of Fashion held in the presence of the country’s Minister of Enterprises and of Made in Italy Adolfo Urso on Tuesday, Camera della Moda, associations Confindustria Moda and Sistema Moda Italia acknowledged the government’s interest in the fashion industry, but underscored the challenges impacting its future.
The government has announced it would support the rescheduling of debt, a tax break on research and development, promotion outside the country and more social welfare measures. Urso also reiterated his ministry’s goal is to implement a Made in Italy law, which would emphasize and add value to the natural and recycled fibers supply chain and provide incentives to the sector.
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Carlo Capasa, chairman of Italy’s Chamber of Fashion, reporting a 5 percent decrease in revenues in the first six months of the year compared to the same period in 2023, said it was “necessary to provide the correct support to the Italian industry and especially to small and medium-size companies,” touting the importance of ongoing conversations with the government.
Confindustria Moda, which represents Assocalzaturifici (footwear), Assopellettieri (leather goods), AIP Associazione Italiana Pellicceria (fur) and UNIC (tanneries), issued a statement on Wednesday saying that, while the attention paid to emergencies in the short term was commendable and important, the government needs to realize that “immediate measures and medium- to long-term interventions” are necessary.
The Table of Fashion was established to discuss the government’s potential solutions to the industry’s crises. The Ministers of Work, Economy, Culture, Foreign Affairs, Environment and Energetic Safety were also present at the event on Tuesday.
Claudia Sequi, president of Assopellettieri representing Confindustria Moda, said “the crisis has reached unexplored peaks. We appreciate the government’s attention to the short-term emergencies but more needs to be done to support the companies and protect know-how and jobs.”
Sequi said the sector comprises around 11,500 companies for a total of around 33 billion euros per year and that it is going through “a complex moment that leads us to face situations that are in a sense unexplored,” citing inflation, rising interest rates, financial dues that have become for many companies “unsustainable” and a crisis that has caused a deterioration of capital.
“This situation is choking the companies, and combined with a difficult geopolitical context — with two wars at Europe’s door and repercussions also in Italy — could cause a loss of the manufacturing pipeline we are rightly so proud of. Companies can’t survive and risk closure,” said Sequi.
In the first four months of the year, the fashion accessories segment registered a 7.9 percent decrease in exports compared to the same period last year, according to Confindustria Moda, which was not confident in a restart in the short term. Based on forecasts from the country’s National Institute for Statistics ISTAT, the leather segment in May showed a 10 percent decrease in exports, which would lead to a decrease of around 8.5 percent in the January-May period compared with last year.
The association observed that this has also led to more hours under the government-funded redundancy pay CIG, up 138.5 percent in the first six months of the year.
The association touted the value of the districts as part of the supply chain and said that “without the intervention of the government the system is at risk,” as is Made in Italy production, expertise, quality and thousands of jobs.
Sistema Moda Italia also issued a statement about its own requests to the government, estimating a 6.2 percent sales decrease for the textile and fashion sector in the first nine months of 2024, compared to the same period last year.
The slowdown accelerated in 2023, with 75 percent of companies reporting a drop in revenues, many reporting a contraction of between 20 and 33 percent, and a further worsening in the third quarter.
Sergio Tamborini, president of Sistema Moda Italia, said “beyond the emergency measures,” the sector needs “an industrial strategy that will work on a 10- to 15-year perspective and protect all the central fundamentals of the industry,” including creativity and technological and industrial skills, urging “the acceleration of fundamental regulations to promote the creation of a new and sustainable production model” similar to that of the industry’s main European partners.
SMI also requires more flexibility on the government-funded redundancy pay, new credit policies, especially for mid-market brands, a tax break on net profits and on the creation of prototypes. The need to recreate some supply chains in Italy, for silk for example, and more attention to recycling were also cited.
“Moments such as the table of fashion are fundamental,” said Tamborini, not only to underscore the needs of the sector, but also to develop “a common objective” in a market that continuously evolves with new challenges.