At Lineapelle innovation, technology and culture to imagine the future of industry

From 37 nations, 1,150 exhibitors (including tanneries, accessories and components, fabrics and synthetics) will participate in the 106th edition of Lineapelle, the most important international exhibition dedicated to the leather, accessories, components, synthetics, fabrics and models for footwear, leather goods, clothing and furnishing sectors, which will open in the halls of Rho Fiera Milano on 23 September next presenting the collections for Autumn-Winter 26-27.

Companies of excellence in an industry made up of more than 50,000 manufactures worldwide, employing more than one million people, with a turnover of around 170 billion dollars, but which are grappling with a difficult economic situation. In this sense, Lineapelle is a valuable networking opportunity and a highly supportive event for all industry players.

Tanning production, in fact, is suffering both in Europe and in the rest of the world, with very few exceptions for individual countries, and with estimated sales results, on average, slightly less negative for sheep and goat skins (-2%) than for bovine (-5%). Among the other products on display, the downward trend is also confirmed for accessories and components (EU trade -5%), while textiles and synthetics appear more stable.

Downstream of the supply chain, the situation is no better: according to Eurostat, European footwear lost a total of 6% of production in the first half of the year compared to the corresponding 2024, while for EU leather goods the drop is as much as 10%. The picture for non-European fashion manufacturers was more dynamic, with the exception of China. Half-yearly results were also down for most of the large luxury groups. Clothing and furnishings generally show a less distressed trend, while the difficult moment for the automotive sector continues (with half-yearly registrations down in Europe, China and India, up in the USA and the UK).

This is why, until 25 September, the fair will not only offer new products from the companies, but also serve as a laboratory for comparison. The excellence of craftsmanship will be celebrated with the workshop programme of "In The Making", a project developed in cooperation with Giorgio Linea, but the opportunities of Artificial Intelligence will also be investigated with the "Lineapelle On The Road - Trame Intelligenti: l'intreccio tra Moda e AI" (On The Road - Intelligent Textures: the interweaving of Fashion and AI), presented in recent months in some districts of the Italian leather industry and that, on the occasion of the fair, will propose a series of case histories and a reflection on how the fashion supply chain is concretely approaching Artificial Intelligence. This will also include the presentation of thestrategic collaboration with Ingenium - Made in Italy Innovation Platform, to accelerate the digital transformation of the fashion supply chain, with a talk dedicated to the future of fashion tech and the impact of Artificial Intelligence in the production chains, which will be flanked by the presence of an AI Space, an experiential place where some of the best international tech start-ups will present innovative solutions applied to the lifestyle world and the supply chain. Finally, Lineapelle's AI virtual assistant, developed by Ingenium and Hevolus, will make its debut at the fair.