Feel the Green | Behind the Stage
The Italian knitwear supply chain tells its story
Talks, shows, exhibitions, and speed dating between businesses and students led to the success of “number zero” of Feel the Green | Behind the Stage, the initiative organised by Feel the Yarn® which brought all parts of the Italian knitwear supply chain together for the first time at a single event, confirming itself as the ideal international partner.
The event was held on 23 and 24 February at Officine del Volo, Milan to coincide with Fashion Week. The concept, organised by Feel the Yarn® with the support of Pantone®, 4sustainability®, Milan Polytechnic (Design Department), Nuova Libra Editrice and Camera Showroom Milano, attracted 600 visitors in two days with considerable peaks coinciding with the 6 talks given by 42 speakers.
While the overarching theme was sustainability, as set out by the 4sustainability® system (People, Trace, Materials, Cycle, Chem and Planet), innovation and creativity also played a key role thanks to the contribution of 28 spinners from Consorzio Promozione Filati (CPF), who joined in the wide range of initiatives available.
One example is the exhibition entitled The wonder, which featured a series of photographic and material inspirations for S/S 2024 curated by Elisabetta Scarpini with the contribution of Modateca Deanna and the collaboration of Camera Showroom Milano, as well as the presentation of the collection by the winner of the 2022 edition of Feel the Yarn®, Marie Nardi, a former Master student in Creative Knitwear Design at Accademia Costume & Moda, which also had its own stand exhibiting 4 of its Master projects.
What made the format developed with the support of the 5 partners (Pantone®, 4sustainability®, Milan Polytechnic, Nuova Libra Editrice and Camera Showroom Milano) truly new for the sector was the ability to create valuable links between the work and education (two major installations recreated the knitwear and textile recycling supply chains live and 3 stands represented the attending schools), to create opportunities for companies to meet each other through talks on highly contemporary themes, and to give space to spinners, who were called upon to present some of the sustainable products they produce.
As mentioned earlier, over 600 visitors enjoyed this symbolic journey into the world of Italian knitwear, attending 6 talks on 6 pillars, led by 42 speakers including entrepreneurs, institutions, moderators and industry experts, who shared their experience in traceability, transparency in the supply chain, recovery, reuse, recycling, circular economy, sustainable raw materials, chemical risk and reduction of toxic and harmful substances in production cycles, and limitation of the environmental and social impact of production. The lens was also focused on the central importance of the designer in manufacturing, as shown by the presentation of the results of Con-Text research conducted by the Design Department at Milan Polytechnic.
The valuable feedback gathered confirms the great proactivity of Feel the Yarn® and its spinners, which are always open to treading new paths and experimenting with unconventional solutions in order to emphasise the excellence of their know-how and gain the best worldwide visibility for the promotion of the Italian supply chain.
