We The Italians | Italian handcrafts: Verona Textiles

Italian handcrafts: Verona Textiles

Italian handcrafts: Verona Textiles

  • WTI Magazine #110 Dec 15, 2018
  • 1617

We are in the 1950s, the years after the Second World War, in Sandra, a village near Lake Garda in the province of Verona, it was here that the history of fashion in Verona began. A history marked by the work of small craft tailors craft that with the commitment, the sacrifices and the support of a network of small family businesses became an industry in the 1960s. It started as an industry of small craft entrepreneurs with the first business outsourcing system: the pieces of the garments to be assembled were delivered directly to the homes of some Verona housewives who had been given sewing machines.

Every night they returned the completed garments for ironing to be taken to the company the next day. The real industrial breakthrough materialised in the mid-60s with the creation of the first industrial building in Verona. In the wake of the strong entrepreneurial spirit of the 1970s and 1980s, many of the employees who had worked as tailors and garment makers within major companies decided to “go it alone” and open their own clothing business. Thus many small businesses were founded in Verona, aggressive, functional and with the right production flexibility to respond quickly to market needs.This is one of the features that led to the start of Italian “Ready-to-Wear” and that favoured the development of the fashion industry around Verona.

In the 1980s, Veronese fashion was enhanced by new big businesses that became internationally famous and prestigious especially for lingerie, casual and sporty wear.In 2003 the District called Veronamoda was founded - a clothing and textile area in the province of Verona, which became VeronaProntoModa - Veneto clothing area - in 2005.

The Product

The first clothing companies founded in the Verona area stood out because they specialised in “ready-to-wear” fashion. The small size of the companies, the simplicity of the chain of production and the speed in response to orders, were - and still are - characteristics of the fashion industry in this area.

Clothing in Verona is mainly dedicated to feminine lines and characterised by a balanced quality / price ratio. Knowledge and experiences related to the fine tailoring of high fashion blend expertly with entrepreneurial flexibility and the ability to innovate.

“Made in Italy” production is characterised by being not only a fact but also a value for the sector, to be treasured along with all the dynamics of the “know-how” considered of strategic importance.

Even today, some companies maintain a type of production linked to “ready-to-wear” fashion with the possibility of presenting four collections a year, supplemented by other “flash” collections almost every month, renewed in the light of the latest fashion trends and thus characterised by freshness and refined style. Others have chosen to specialise or create parallel “planned” production lines, receiving praise not only in Italy but especially abroad.

The Veronese

Clothing is one of the top four industries in the province of Verona, characterised by the spread small and medium sized businesses in the sector. The area most affected by fashion displays characteristic features, framed between the charming hills and expanses of plain.It is concentrated mainly around the towns of Mozzecane, Nogarole Rocca, Castelnuovo del Garda and Sandra, thus in the area West of Verona touching the shores of Lake Garda and in the South, to the borders with Emilia Romagna.

The geographical location in this area has been helped by logistics, characterised by the abundance of communication networks whose efficiency allows companies to source raw materials and make goods shipments speedily.In 2003 the production chain of this area was recognized by as the “Verona Fashion District” by a Regional Law of the Veneto.

Camera di Commercio di Verona