Confindustria Moda: 'The Italian system is under attack from China'

There are only two weeks to go before the Sustainable Fashion Forum, which, as in the first three editions, will be held in Venice: the programme for the two days, 23 and 24 October, is outlined, very rich and includes the presentation of the strategic study 'Just Fashion Transition, the permanent observatory on the sustainable transition of the key supply chains of fashion, clothing, footwear and leather goods, edited by The European House-Ambrosetti (Teha).

In view of the forum, Luca Sburlati, president of Confindustria Moda, wanted to anticipate some of the topics that will be dealt with and send out signals of attention - if not alarm - to the supply chains that will be meeting in Venice and to the institutions, anticipating the presentation of the strategic plan for the sector developed by the association looking ahead to 2030 and that will be illustrated in Rome in November.

"The Italian fashion system is under attack: in the first six months of 2025, exports fell by about 4% while imports rose by 6%, with China alone registering +18%," explained Sburlati, president since last February and therefore at his first Sustainable Fashion Forum, an event organised in collaboration with Teha and Confindustria Veneto Est. "Almost one million individual parcels arrive from China every day without tariffs, without customs costs, and often avoiding VAT," continued Sburlati, then turning to the theme of the Forum to remind us that "sustainability is a process in continuous evolution in which Italy must maintain leadership and vision. The image of the many supply chains of the fashion system, defined as 'an ecosystem' in which there are interdependencies that must be transformed into virtuous circles, is effective.

The title and leitmotif of the 2025 edition of the Forum is Harmonising Values: in Venice, shared standards at European level will be discussed and the strategic value of the 'new' sustainability will be explored, today more than ever a distinguishing factor capable of differentiating quality production from mass production, to return to the fast and ultra fast fashion coming from China.

"At the European level, ESG policies are surrounded by a climate of uncertainty, and in the fashion and luxury sectors we are recording a strong contraction in volumes at the top end of consumption, which directly affects Italian-made products,' explained Flavio Sciuccati, partner & director global fashion Unit of Teha. 'To all this we have added, this year, a particularly delicate issue: the intervention of the Milan Public Prosecutor's Office in the investigation into caporalato in the fashion sector, with precautionary measures against some major brands.