Investing in sustainability is no longer a taboo for Italian fashion SMEs, which are moving from the uncertain actions of the first hour – the capsule collection in organic cotton or the garment made with recycled material – to a more complete analysis of environmental performance and social, in view of projects that affect the company organization. Also because, as we saw at Pitti Uomo which closes today in Florence, whoever started first, following a clear and coherent path, is already reaping the benefits of investments in sustainability.
The brand Save the Duck at the entrance to the Pitti stand, highlighted the BCorporation certification (one of the most qualified to measure environmental and social performance) that it has held since 2019, with the indication “we are the first B-Corp of the Italian fashion system »(we are the first B-Corp of the Italian fashion system). This year the company (64 million turnover expected in 2022, + 36% on the previous year, with an EBITDA of 20%) will face, after the expiry of the first three years, the new analysis to confirm the certification, with the intent on improving even more.
“We have completely traced the supply chain, from the recycled pet with which we produce 55% of the spring-summer 2023 collection to the final garment – explains the founder and CEO Nicolas Bargi, who has just published the fourth sustainability report – and in 2021 we have totally compensated carbon emissions by setting the target net zero (canceling emissions from the supply chain to end users, ed.) by 2030 “. The fact of producing a large part of the collection in China is not an obstacle: «You have to get out of your mind where it is produced – says Bargi – and think about how it is produced. And in any case, it is easier to convince a Chinese factory to change course than an Italian one “.
The route has changed by the Spanish Ecoalf, BCorporation since 2018 as it stands out, also in this case, at the entrance to the Pitti stand: «All the cotton garments of the next summer collection come from recycled and recyclable fibers – they explain – thanks to the collaboration with a Moroccan company. In September we will launch a sports collection made with a fabric that does not release microfilaments, one of the big problems of sportswear. We are growing in Italy and at the end of October we will open the first store in Milan ».
It has been investing in sustainability for some time Paul & Shark, the Andrea Dini brand that at Pitti Uomo presents jackets made with discarded sails that will be auctioned for charity. «99% of the fabrics used in the next summer collection come from recycled fibers – explains Dini – and within the company there is a team dedicated to sustainability which today is made up of three people. In addition to the origin of the fabrics, I am convinced that we must look at the production method: for example, saving water, which is a limited resource, is fundamental and can lead to choosing, precisely in the name of sustainability, a non-organic rather than organic cotton. which requires more washes “. Paul & Shark is also considering the B-Corp certification, a goal that aims to obtain the Veneto group by 2023 Slowear (brands Incotex, Zanone, Glanshirt and Montedoro), which has already become a benefit company. The Bolognese is considering the roads to take Wp Work in Progress, container of eight brands including Barbour, Baracuta, Filson, who turns 40 and celebrates them with an archive exhibition at the Pitti stand: “We have decided to install solar panels on the roof of our thousand square meter factory – explains the president Cristina Calori – and we try to recover vintage garments to give them new life and to use recycled fabrics. We are choosing an environmental consultant to accompany us on the path of sustainability “.