The 61st edition of Filo, the International Yarns and Fibres Exhibition, closed at Allianz MiCo Milan registering highly positive results. The lively atmosphere among the booths and the areas of the Exhibition of Yarns and Fibres rewarded high-quality collections, which incorporate innovation and search for sustainability of Italian and foreign textile manufacturers.
Buyers’ flow was n particularly intense from the first day of the exhibition, as well as during the second one. Worth underlining is the growth in foreign visitors, since it strengthens a trend that has now been recorded for several editions and also affects exhibitors from abroad. Concerning buyers, the long collaboration between Filo and ITA Agency allowed organising the visit of a delegation made up of 27 foreign professionals coming from France, Spain, Portugal, Hungary, Turkey, China, Denmark, Tunisia, South Korea. Thanks to the cooperation between Filo and the Piedmont Region, it was possible to welcome to the fair a delegation made up of 10 buyers, coming from Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Portugal, and the U.K., that participated in the fair thanks to Textile Integrated Supply Chain (PIF) Project of Piedmont Region, funded by P.R.FESR 2021-2027, carried out through the Regional Agency for Internationalisation. In addition, at the end of the exhibition, the group of buyers took part in a study tour in Biella district, to delve into the production excellence of Biella territory.
Paolo Monfermoso, responsible of Filo, said: “The 61st edition closed very positively. From the first opinions collected among the exhibitors, there’s satisfaction for the job done during the fair. Once more, Filo proved to be a unique working platform, totally reserved to the professionals belonging to the industry: textile professionals are aware of finding at Filo high-quality collections and services aiming at facilitating the collaborations and the match between demand and supply of yarns and materials.
Speaking of collaborations, once again, the presence of dyeing mills, and associations and producers representing the world of natural and man-made fibres was particularly appreciated by all operators who participated in the fair, precisely because it fosters an effective dialogue among the companies working in the different steps of the supply chain which can lead to interesting product developments.”
The main topic of the 61st edition was the circularity in textile industry. The inauguration ceremony specifically dealt with this topic, starting from a concrete example: the pilot project of Recycling Hub of Biella district. Speakers of the round table were Elena Chiorino, Councillor of Education and Merit, Employment and Training of Piedmont Region, Sergio Tamborini, President of SMI -Sistema Moda Italia, Paolo Barberis Canonico, Vice-President of Unione Industriale Biellese, Marco Farina, Responsible for the Assessment and Development of the Projects of A2A Ambiente, and Giovanni Marchi, President of MagnoLab.
Paolo Monfermoso also underlined: “As President Tamborini said, the textile-apparel-fashion industry needs to face sustainability, also through the creation of an alternative supply chain committed in recycling materials. We are particularly pleased that the Recycling Hub in Biella has been introduced here, at Filo, by involving in the discussion the protagonists who contributed to design and implement the pilot project. The project involves the whole supply chain, and it lays its foundations on the collaboration between institutional and industrial players, and it is oriented to find effective solutions to the actual and urgent challenges for companies working in this sector, in line with the approach that Filo shares and promotes in all its activities.”
Filo would like to thank all exhibitors and visitors who, despite the difficult situation, have shown during the two days of fair a strong desire to give new impetus and a strong willingness to overcome any kind of problem, also geopolitical ones, through hard work.
The 62nd edition of Filo will be held on the 18th and the 19th of September 2024 at Allianz MiCo-Milan.
