From the Sector

For over 80 years Riri Group has established itself as a leading point of reference for the creation of details of style providing high-end fashion brands with top quality accessories – which now include zippers, buttons, metal components and fashion jewels.

All things style and sustainability: This year Première Vision Paris (08 – 10 February) will be once more the stage to show off the results. The new Spring/Summer 2023 line is inspired by three distinct eras and paths, but at the same time it conveys a total synergy and integration between the various divisions of the Group, coordinated and harmonised as well as united by their common interest in nature and sustainability.

SOUL COMFORT
Off-the-grid essentials between relaxation and style
Sparked from the contemporary need to balance happiness and security, while enriched by an aesthetic and provocative approach, this line embodies all the value and potential of a sustainabilityoriented communication for each and every product, as pieces feature the relevant information on the zip tape and on the button application support. This line presents softer colours that encompass a wide range of styles, including floral, summer satin and semi-transparency, accompanied by innovative yarns and sustainable materials, such as hemp, linen, silk, certified organic cotton, recycled nylon and bio-based polyester. The line also features stainless steel products, including mono-material buttons and zipper chains or the use of aluminium chains that stand out for their particular lightness.

OUTDOOR EXPRESSION
To always stand out
Inspired by nature and outdoor activities, in this section the focus is on attire codes that become the means through which everyone can express and enhance their look in every context, even when immersed in the surrounding environment. Coloured stripes and rubberized soft touch materials are the two essential concepts, combined with bright and flashy colours. The Storm Evo zip, reversed coated nylon zips (among which the one with the reflector catches the eye), and the recycled nylon buttons are back.

WISE EXCLUSIVITY
Smart and sustainable luxury
Each creation in this line is studied down to the smallest detail, to achieve luxury products that increase their value over time thanks to their sustainable process and long life cycle, achieved through multiple possibilities for use in different ways and areas. We find here the use of diamond, recreated in the laboratory with more sustainable techniques, but also zips with elegant and refined lines, the use of stainless steel and PVD and finally, the use of precious galvanic finishes on buttons, but also on chains and pullers. This path shows the important role collaboration plays between the divisions of the Riri Group, making it possible to create something unique and valuable.

Archroma announced the launch of EARTH SOFT, a new softening system for textile and fashion applications, based on Archroma's latest innovation, a vegan silicone softener, Siligen® EH1, with 35% plant-based active content.

Siligen® EH1 is the latest addition in the plant-based innovations developed by Archroma in recent years, such as EarthColors® dyes and Appretan® NTR binders, as alternatives offered to manufacturers and brands looking to reduce the use of fossil fuel based ingredients without compromising performance.

The range has been developed in line with the principles of “The Archroma Way to a sustainable world: safe, efficient, enhanced, it’s our nature”. More than 35% of the Siligen® EH1 softener's active content is based on plant-based, renewable raw materials. In addition, the product features ultralow cyclic siloxanes (D4, D5, D6) which are classified by the European Chemicals Agency as “Substances of Very High Concern” due to their very persistent and bioaccumulative properties.

Siligen® EH1 is ideally suited for shirts, underwear, sportswear, towels, bed sheets, etc. as it provides an excellent wearing comfort by supporting a good moisture transportation and delivering a smooth and soft touch.

The new softener, and the EARTH SOFT system which also includes a Hydroperm® wicking agent to boost hydrophilic properties on synthetic and blended fibers, can be applied on all natural and synthetic textile fibers.

Siligen® EH1 is suitable for both woven and knitted articles. It can be applied by padding process, as well as by exhaust process as it shows a very good shear stability and a low foaming profile. It can be used on white articles and those treated with optical brighteners, as it doesn’t cause thermomigration nor phenolic yellowing.

Paul Cowell, Head of Competence Centers for Brand & Performance Textile Specialties at Archroma, comments: “The new EARTH SOFT system based on Siligen® EH1 softener adds to our growing portfolio of innovations based on natural and renewable plant-based resources. This new breakthrough innovation by Archroma helps us and our partners in the textile and fashion industry to minimize our dependence on petroleum fossil fuel products.”

• The Green Revolution: How Microfactories Can Change the Face of Fashion by Mark Sollman, Product Manager EMEA, Mimaki Europe

With the all-important COP26 Climate Change Conference having taken centre stage in November, there is no time like the present for the fashion world to rally together in stepping up sustainability efforts and getting carbon emissions under control. Globally, the fashion industry is now estimated to account for around 10 percent of greenhouse gas emissions and 20 percent of wastewater , making the pursuit of greener production methods more pertinent than ever before. Thankfully, we are seeing a new era of production enter the fashion arena, with the increasing emergence of technologically advanced, highly automated microfactories.

Along with reducing unnecessary waste through on-demand production, microfactories have a smaller ecological footprint than traditional garment production and require no water use during the production process, making it not only a faster solution, but a greener one too.

Last year’s FESPA saw Mimaki team up with fashion designer Carolina Guzman to bring her designs to life in real time at the show, setting up its own working microfactory live on-site to take her designs from screen to garment within just a day. Guzman’s designs were created using Mimaki’s TS100-1600 Sublimation Printer, before being transferred to textile, digitally cut and finally pieced together. Devised with a string of ethical and environmental objectives threaded throughout, the microfactory also exclusively utilised eco-friendly Greentex fabric, and any remaining material was donated to Sheltersuit: a wind- and waterproof coat that can be transformed into a sleeping bag, which is provided free of charge to homeless people and refugees.

Through working with a number of strategic partners – including transfer printing expert, Klieverik; paper solutions specialist, Neenah Coldenhove; and digital cutting equipment provider, Summa – Mimaki was able to produce a collection of unique, high-quality garments live on the stand during the tradeshow, demonstrating to visitors from more than 100 countries some of the key reasons that microfactories seem set to change the future of fashion…

Unparalleled speed and versatility
Where traditionally, apparel manufacturing has centred on a production chain model of sourcing materials and producing garments in bulk, microfactories are now enabling on-demand, on-location production, making it possible to create everything from unique, one-off pieces and samples right through to entire product lines – all at unprecedented speeds. This means greater flexibility and customisation, enabling designers to modify or update designs and respond to market trends as they occur.

Simplified supply chains and minimised risk
The microfactory setup brings production in-house and on-demand, minimising the cost of not only storing stock, but also of shipping it and responsibly disposing of unsold items. Where recent geopolitical events have highlighted the fragility of global supply chains, microfactories offer a unique independence from these systems, empowering garment manufacturers to future-proof their businesses, become less reliant on external systems and suppliers, and reduce the risk of disruptions.

A boosted bottom line and a greener future
Facilitating savings in a whole line of resources, from physical storage and production space to time and energy, microfactories ultimately have the potential to significantly increase profitability for garment manufacturers, with the additional benefit of being easily scalable as production increases. Perhaps even more compelling, however, are the environmental considerations. Demonstrated on a small scale through Mimaki’s recent project, the environmental benefits inherent to microfactory production will have an even greater impact as it becomes more prolific and commonplace throughout the fashion world, with the potential to effect meaningful environmental change as adoption increases in the years to come.

At Pitti Uomo, Bemberg™ by Asahi Kasei celebrates the new year exploring the company’s 90 years anniversary and journey. In Florence, Bemberg™ past and present are linked by style: on display are key historic garments worn by icons such as J.F. Kennedy belonging to historic Roman Sartoria Litrico together with Bemberg ™ new visionary claim “Crafted Elegance“.

On January 11^th, Bemberg™ will be at Pitti Uomo 101 featuring an exclusive collaboration with Luca Litrico, head of the Roman historic Sartoria Litrico, founded by his uncle Angelo Litrico in 1951. He became famous for crafting the highest-quality suits for all the most important men of Dolce Vita era, from Richard Burton to Marcello Mastroianni. Its historic relevance has even been recognized by the Ministry of Cultural Heritage, thanks to its archive composed of hundreds of photos and sketches signed by Angelo Litrico himself. For this occasion, Bemberg™ will showcase four historic suits wore by true style arbiters a such as: former US president John F. Kennedy, dolce vita poster-boy Rossano Brazzi, American astronaut James B. Irwin and iconic fashion designer Angelo Litrico. All garments feature stylish linings woven with Bemberg™ fiber disclosing its ductility always in vogue through time. Over the decades, Bemberg™ established heritage in formal lining has expanded into new territories and able to represent also contemporary outerwear styles.
 
“We are so excited to be back in Florence. Pitti Uomo and Italy are the perfect starting point of our journey through style.” says Mr. Koji Hamada, CEO of Asahikasei Fibers Italia, “At our booth visitors can glimpse the link between past and present, our values and chromosomes for the fashion to come.”

Bemberg™ vision is centred around contemporary beauty, and uniqueness – the fibre manufacturing is exclusively taking place in Nobeoka, where its closed-loop circular economy production approach together its transparent and traceable processes are able to guarantee the responsible certified values.
 
Bemberg™ by Asahi Kasei will unveil the second chapter of its journey at Première Vision in Paris with an exhibition where visitors will be able to explore the fashion world, from India to Japan, through fabrics and style of today and tomorrow.

The year 2021 is expected to end on an extremely positive note for the Swiss Group, with an organic turnover record (significantly higher than pre-pandemic levels) and an acceleration of the product range completion strategy: after the addition of Amom, in June, Riri is proud to share the closing of the acquisition and integration into the Group of DMC, a company specialized in the metal components sector for haute couture, more specifically leatherwear. This is another step towards creating a single hub dedicated to luxury accessories, whose goal is to develop a balanced portfolio including zips, buttons, metal hardware, and fashion jewels.

DMC, established in 1976 in Scarperia e San Piero a Sieve, near Florence, has a consolidated experience with major luxury brands and a strategic position, being located close to the Tuscan leatherwear district. Originally a family-run business, today it is a company which combines highly skilled Italian artisan tradition, which has a strong connection in the region, with the use of cutting-edge technologies. Its comprehensive vertical integration system allows for in-house management of all production process phases.

“The addition of DMC to the family” – explains Renato Usoni, CEO of the Riri Group – “is not just a bonus for our offer in terms of product range. It means also a fundamental milestone in the creation strategy of a fully integrated business model”. As a matter of fact, the operation is a further improvement in the Group’s designing potential, increasingly able to provide tailor-made accessories, as requested by each client, achieving very high levels of customization while keeping up massive investments in new technologies, organization systems and sustainability projects with a cross-cutting impact.

“Our Group” – Usoni adds – “is, to all intents and purposes, a leader in terms of innovation, thanks to its state-of-the-art plants, which are located in seven production factories, and thanks to its constant search on emerging technologies and materials”. More specifically, DMC’s proposal – in line with Riri’s – is increasingly focused on the use of sustainable products and on processes with a low environmental impact.

Furthermore, the new company in the Group is committed to integrating the economic development of its business with the ensuing social accountability. Evidence of this attention is shown by its having been awarded the certifications ISO 9001, due to the quality of its processes, products and services, and SA 8000, for its ethical management of human resource. Moreover, every year DMC produces a social report which, in line with what have always been distinctive values of Riri, bears witness to its intent of communicating its achievements clearly and transparently.

Iluna Group and Maglificio Ripa announce a strategic collaboration, each maintaining its own identity and independence, based on the complementarity of the proposal and the convergence of intentions for a new and more functional way of partnership.

Iluna Group, a leader in the production of smart lace, and Maglificio Ripa, internationally recognized for the production of premium and responsible jersey, both established in common sectors - from underwear to beachwear and sportswear - formally launched this collaboration during the MarediModa show in Cannes with a joint double stand where visitors could discover the latest collections of the two companies and also imagine new designs and solutions for sustainable fashion.

"We are living in a moment of strong change, from the wave of sustainability that is finally sweeping the fashion world to new market scenarios. And we are convinced that collaboration is the key to face these new challenges. In Maglificio Ripa we saw a complementary and unique partner with whom we can reach partners, customers and suppliers in a more complete way." comments Furio Annovazzi, CEO of Iluna Group. "Ours is not a union between companies but a new model of partnership, a sort of strategic symbiosis aimed at developing together new paths that can lead the both of us both to growth. Our collections, presented in the same context, can nurture the creativity of customers at a time when the stylistic contaminations are increasingly pronounced," adds Luca Bianco, CEO of Maglificio Ripa.
 
Furthermore, Iluna Group and Maglificio Ripa jointly created their new campaign with a photo shoot and video clip as well as jointly developed a trend scenario that allowed both companies to better embrace the evolving market by sharing information, perspectives and ideas.

• CELLIANT®, Hologenix’s flagship product, makes impact in pure white color

 
Aeon, the largest retailer in Asia, is introducing “Recovery Wear,” called TOPVALU SELECT CELLIANT – undershirts – using the first-ever CELLIANT® fibers from Hologenix that are pure white in color.  It will be available in about 350 stores throughout Japan and at Aeon’s official online store, Aeon Style Online.  Aeon is expecting sales of TOPVALU SELECT CELLIANT to increase substantially by 2025.
 
TOPVALU SELECT CELLIANT offers the benefits of CELLIANT, a responsive textile that captures and converts body heat into infrared, with the pure white color Aeon customers have requested.
 
Many men prefer to wear white undershirts under their business shirts in Japan. In response to such demands, AEON planned and developed the pure white CELLIANT undershirt for the first time.  TOPVALU SELECT CELLIANT is registered as a general medical device in Japan.
CELLIANT mineral-infused fabrics have been shown to help regulate body temperature and improve local circulation in healthy individuals for faster recovery, better sleep and stronger performance during the day.
 
“We are very excited by the introduction of the first-ever CELLIANT product in pure white,” said Seth Casden, Hologenix Co-Founder and CEO. “Achieving this pure white color took a lot of dedicated effort from our global research team and we commend Aeon for being the first to introduce it to the consumer market.”

Black Friday is known as the world's largest shopping event, which is constantly growing in size. Rather than offering highly promoted sales, a Finnish clothing company Pure Waste joined forces with HelsinkiMissio, an NGO battling loneliness in Finland. On Black Friday, instead of buying clothes anyone can donate a friend to people suffering from loneliness.

A Global survey shows that over a third of adults experience feelings of loneliness worldwide. Many who feel lonely try to cope by shopping, which in fact has been proven to aggravate loneliness and can even cause feelings of depression.¹

This is why HelsinkiMissio, a Finnish NGO battling loneliness, and Pure Waste, a Finnish clothing manufacturer, joined forces on Black Friday. All Pure Waste’s products on their webstore have been replaced with a chance to donate for HelsinkiMissio’s important work against loneliness.

“Black Friday is known as the biggest commercial event, but for lonely people it can actually be the darkest day of the year. This is why we wanted to shed light on this issue precisely today. We hope that together with Pure Waste we’re able to raise awareness on the issue and furthermore help lonely people”, says Tuula Colliander, Executive Director from HelsinkiMissio.

Black Friday stunt is executed together with Pure Waste, a Finland-based clothing manufacturer that has never taken part to Black Friday due to their values. The company, also known as a pioneer in textile recycling, makes its clothing from 100% recycled cotton, utilizing cutting waste from the textile industry.

¹ Pieters, Rik: Bidirectional Dynamics of Materialism and Loneliness: Not Just a Vicious Cycle. Journal of Consumer Research Volume 40, Issue 4, 1 December 2013, Pages 615–631.

• CHIC Shanghai successfully completed under high safety and hygiene conditions
• The trend hotspot for the Chinese sales market: Lively interest of more than 20,000 trade visitors in the new collections of the 487 brands at the NECC in Shanghai
• Sustainability in great demand in all areas
• CHIC Shenzhen focuses on trading in the strong sales region of South China and the international clusters Hong Kong and Macao: Date postponed from November to December due to current Covid-19 cases in China

The fashion world of China met at the physical event CHIC Shanghai from October 9-11, 2021 at the National Exhibition and Convention Center in Shanghai

487 exhibitors presented themselves in clearly structured segments on 50,000 square meters. Maximum compliance with the security measures determined the course. Against this background the exhibitors welcomed more than 20,000 trade visitors and reported cheerful orders.

The 487 exhibitors were also satisfied with the business activity and reported successful orders.

Perfect presentation platform: the CHIC Matching area
The expanded matchmaking events at CHIC were also enthusiastically received.
In total, over 37 matchmaking events took place in the specially set up matching area consisting of several presentation platforms and private negotiation rooms at the fair. From company presentations by industry giants such as Shein, through trade fair tours to selected one-on-one discussions, CHIC brought exhibitors and visitors together in a targeted manner. More than 600 participants have been matched by this CHIC event. Among them visitors such as Shein, Walmart, Wang Yi Yan Xuan, Tiktok, BAILIAN GROUP, LIQUN etc, parts of the organizer's broad network.

Continuing growth: sustainable productions
Sustainability is one of the most important consumer trends in China. CHIC played the theme in all exhibition areas; from womenswear, kidswear and menswear to accessories, sustainable collections were represented in all segments.

Design talent and traditional styles
In the IMPULSES area, innovative designer brands showed inspiring trends, high-quality collections and fashion variety like Kmusso, MIJA or Yu Jian Tian with its new design collection made by natural materials such as mulberry silk and wool, presenting the unique traditional Chinese style.

CHIC Shanghai presented the entire range of the fashion business in a total of 12 exhibition segments. This year's acclaimed visual concept, created by lava beijing, has been awarded the Bronze Award of the Hiiibrand Awards 2021 in the Identity category.

Digital tools and physical events
In addition to the on-site trade fair offer, CHIC is expanding its reach through the consistent use of digital tools. The CHIC app combines all the functions needed for a successful trade fair participation, from the digital trade fair catalog and matchmaking to direct appointments and live chats for all participants who cannot be on site.

The next CHIC in Shanghai will take place in March 2022.

RadiciGroup is exhibiting at the A+A trade fair, an international event focusing on safety solutions for the workplace, to be held in Dusseldorf, Germany, from 26 to 29 October. This international show gives RadiciGroup the opportunity to present its latest developments in personal protective equipment (PPE) for industrial use, including coveralls, gowns, caps, full hoods, shoe covers and boots.

This international show gives RadiciGroup the opportunity to present its latest developments in  personal protective equipment (PPE) for industrial use, including coveralls, gowns, caps, full hoods, shoe covers and boots. These products are part of a new line, Radipeople, a trade name identifying the new protective workwear sold by RadiciGroup: end products of a traceable supply chain, in which special attention is paid to the choice of raw materials and the quality of the final products offered the market.

At RadiciGroup, care for the health and safety of people is one of the pillars of the Group's sustainability strategy, combined with a strong commitment to safeguarding the environment. Radipeople Eco, the first protective coverall with 100% end-of-life recyclability is proof of such commitment. All parts of Radipeople Eco: the fabric, lamination, zipper and thread are made of the same material, 100% polypropylene. Furthermore, the Group’s offering includes garments made with Respunsible®, a spundbond obtained from recycled polypropylene or materials certified under the ISCC Plus scheme.

Thanks to their versatility and technical characteristics, the nonwoven solutions proposed by RadiciGroup are suitable for many industrial sectors, including oil and gas, utilities, construction, food, automotive painting and shipbuilding, maintenance, agriculture, laboratories, microprocessor manufacturing and the pharmaceutical and chemical industries.

Radipeople personal protective equipment delivers excellent protection against external agents (liquids, splashes, jets, particles and sprays), high protection against biological hazards and infectious agents, and high robustness and lightness to optimize protection, on the one hand, and comfort, on the other. All Radipeople protective equipment is made of fully traceable materials, manufactured by a totally Italian production chain involving hundreds of workers, and sold in packaging designed with an ecodesign approach, that is, fully recyclable minimized packaging.