MILANO UNICA 29th edition:Italy holds steady

The 29th edition of Milano Unica， the Italian Textile and Accessories Trade Show， held July 9th to 11th 2019， at Fieramilano Rho， presenting the high end collections for the Autumn/Winter 2020/2021 season， was attended by more than 6，000 companies. Foreign companies increased in number （+ 2.6%）， while the number of Italian businesses held steady.

Contributors to the positive result included companies from： India（+13.7%）， China Hong Kong （+13%）， Great Britain （+11%）， France（+10%）， Spain （+9.5%）， the Netherlands （+8.7%） and the USA （+ 3.5%）， which counterbalanced the lower number of buyers from Mainland China（-13.7%） and Germany （-14.7%）.

This edition， made possible thanks to the significant support of the Ministry for Economic Development and its operative arm， ICE Agency， featured the participation of 465 exhibitor companies， in line with the July 2018 edition， joined by 143 companies included in the Japan and Korea Observatories and Origin， Passion and Belief， the trades show promoted by IEG and dedicated to suppliers of semi-finished artisanal products， and of high quality “Made in Italy”， for a total of 608 exhibitors.

Digital innovation and sustainability were the topics examined in depth in the traditional presentation， on the occasion of the Opening Ceremony. Introduced by Ercole Botto Poala， President of Milano Unica， and followed by David Pambianco， of Pambianco Strategie dImpresa， the following also addressed the audience： Carlo Capasa， President of the National Chamber of Italian Fashion， Roberto Luongo， General Director of ICE Agency， Nazzareno Mengoni， Co-Founder of Startupbootcamp Italia， Alberto Paccanelli， President of Euratex， Marino Vago， President of Sistema Moda Italia and Edoardo Zegna， Head of content and innovation for Gruppo Ermenegildo Zegna.

All the speakers， with reference to their different areas of competence， affirmed that digital innovation and sustainability are， and will be even more so in the near future， the issues that determine who stays on the market and who doesnt. In other words， its not merely an opportunity： these are the necessary conditions for remaining competitive.

“I confess that in the days leading up to this edition，” said Ercole Botto Poala， President of Milano Unica， “I was worried by the signals emerging from the market in the first months of the year， and the results of the trade shows that preceded ours. But the confirmation of the attendance figures， and above all the satisfaction expressed by the exhibitors， which I heard directly， dispelled my fears and confirmed the wisdom of choosing a July date. The contacts， espe-cially with foreign buyers， were of good quality， and bode well for future orders. Happily， Milano Unica continues to surprise， demonstrating that it really is a cant-miss appointment.”

“Insofar as the e-milanounica digital marketplace， developed in collaboration with Pitti Immagine，”added the President of Milano Unica， “it is gratifying to see that in just under six months， the number of participants has tripled. As I said in my opening address， now we all have to work on one of the great advantages of the digital world， which is personalization. On sustainability， I believe that in addition to focusing on the quality of the production process， it is important to steer attention， in this edition， to initiatives that illustrate the possibility of working not just with classic， evergreen products， but also with innovative， creative ones. I cannot， however， overlook the difficulties that are tied to the limited size of many of our companies， and for this very reason we intend to intensify our presence in various areas， explaining the advantages of working together. Finally， in collaboration with ICE Agency， as mentioned by our General Director， Roberto Luongo， we should start looking at Africa as a possible future market.”

During the presentation， Carlo Capasa and Ercole Botto Poala announced the names of the 5 semifinalists for The Franca Sozzani GCC Emerging Designer Award： Acbc （Italy）， Benedetta Bruzziches （Italy）， Flavia La Rocca （Italy）， Anyango Mpinga （Africa） and Twins Florence （Italy）. The winner will receive the award at the Green Carpet Fashion Awards， which will be held at the Teatro alla Scala （Milan） on September 22nd 2019. Enthusiasm ran high among young designers over the sustainable textiles supplied by Milano Unica exhibitors for an increasingly ecofriendly fashion.

“The key concepts of the 29th edition of Milano Unica，” declared Roberto Luongo， Managing Director of ICE， “digital innovation and sustainability， are fundamental components of ICEs actions in support of the internationalization of the Italian manufacturing sector. Today， innovation goes hand in hand with internationalization. In fact， to innovate， companies need an innovative vision and an approach that takes into account new models of consumption， new markets and the web. Consumers， particularly millennials， care about the origin of a product， about sustainability， an issue that can no longer be ignored and that can act as an important driver to promote Made in Italy goods and services. The numbers posted by Milano Unica， to which ICE Agency made an important contribution， with a high level delegation of international buyers and media，” added the ICE Director， “again confirm the value of this promotional platform. Our collaboration， together with the other ICE initiatives for the sector， has created a precious channel for valorizing Made in Italy on the international markets. Its a result achieved thanks to intense teamwork， engaged in by the entire system.”

“Tomorrow， July 12th，” says Massimo Mosiello， General Director of Milano Unica since the very first edition， “the updated virtual trade show will be online， demonstrating that we are staying in step with cultural， technological and social changes： in other words， with the market. Moving the shows date back to July was once again shown to be a wise decision， matching up well with our exhibitors needs and also those of national and international visitors. The satisfaction of both is the best reward for all the collaborators who have worked unstintingly to once again come up with an original edition. Among the events will surely remember， the celebration of the 40th anniversary of Pratotrade， underscoring the importance of this important Italian textile district. Lastly， but no less important， we must thank ICE Agency for its support and contribution to giving our Trade Show its international reach.”

Milano Unica extends special thanks to the Ministry of Economic Development， ICE Agency， Sistema Moda Italia and the City of Milan for its sponsorship.

In addition， it expresses its gratitude to Banca Sella for its collaboration and to the sponsors Caffè Toraldo and Lauretana.