Fashion: revenues down 5.3%. Exports rise to 90 billion

Italian fashion is slowing down more than expected, sunk by a negative third quarter (July-September): according to the Fashion economic trends of the National Chamber of Italian Fashion, the sector - together with the so-called "connected" sectors: jewellery, eyewear, beauty - closed the nine months of 2023 with a -6.5% drop in revenues (between January and June the drop was -6.1%) and will close 2024 just under Euro 96 billion, down 5.3% compared to 2023. The sector is therefore back under the 100 billion ceiling that it had broken through for the first time last year and is doing worse than estimated: in September, the decline forecast by Camera Moda on an annual basis was limited to -3.5 per cent. Narrowing the focus, the sector is travelling at two speeds: clothing and accessories, which have the greatest weight in terms of revenue, recorded a drop of 8 per cent in both the second and third quarters of 2024, compared to the corresponding periods of the previous year. Related sectors such as eyewear and jewellery, which had been a breath of fresh air for the industry's accounts in the first six months, continued to grow (+3.8%), but with less sprint. "Turnover in the sector is going worse than expected," confirmed Carlo Capasa, president of Cnmi, at the presentation of the Milan Men's Fashion week in January 2025, "and, considering the price increases that have been recorded in recent years, the drop in terms of volume is even greater. There is growth on the horizon, with luxury consumers set to reach 500 million, but for now we have to close ranks and protect the supply chain. This is why we have appealed to the government'. Just yesterday, the go-ahead was given for a four-week extension, until 31 January 2025, of the redundancy fund for the fashion industry. A EUR 36.8 million intervention (with additional funds of EUR 3.6 million) proposed in an amendment to the Dl Pnrr.

The least critical situation is the one coming from foreign markets: in 2024 exports will exceed EUR 90 billion, up 2% on last year (+5.5%). Given the drop in imports, the trade surplus would rise to 26.6 billion. Even in the case of exports, however, the situation is not homogeneous and the core business of the sector - the clothing and accessories segment - has a negative sign in the first eight months of the year. Driving the values are the related industries that between January and August 2024 recorded an increase in exports in value equal to 20.6%, with a peak of +29.6% in trade towards non-EU countries: in the lead, with about 3.4 billion in goods exported in eight months is Turkey, which stands out as the leading market ahead of the USA and France, but the Emirates (+14.3%), Spain (+18.4%) and the United Kingdom (+10.2%) also recorded double-digit increases. The collapse of exports to Switzerland, the hub of the large luxury groups, is the trait d'union between the exports of all types of goods: there is a conspicuous drop in exports of related goods (-19.1%) but in the case of the fashion industry tout court it scores a -51.2%, coming in at 1.7 billion Euros. With France (first market) stable and Germany, second, down 5.8%, the fashion industry closed the eight months with a 4.8% drop in exports, which rises to -6.1% in the non-European area. China (+9.4%) and Japan (+5.7%) held up. "The fashion sector, despite a phase of slowdown, continues to be a driving force for Italian exports," said Matteo Zoppas, president of Ice, "with the 5.5 billion in menswear, up 2.7% from January to July 2024, which is particularly significant. The outlook for the fashion industry is worrying, as there is a mismatch between market demand and warehouse availability that is critically slowing down production. It has to be understood whether this is a structural or a temporary phenomenon'.

The fashion crisis, closely linked to the slowdown in production and the stagnation of consumption in some key markets such as China, is taking on clearer and clearer contours. "The unstable geopolitical situation has had a major impact on the fashion industry and in Italy too there is a drop in consumption due to the absence of certain nationalities of tourists that have always bought so much," said Capasa. Confirmation of the drop in domestic consumption, with clothing and footwear forecast at -2.7% in 2024, also comes from the Cdp report on made-in-Italy fashion, which analyses the entire sector, from production to sales, for a total of €75 billion (equal to 5.1% of GDP) in added value and over 1.2 million employees. To stimulate consumption, Capasa emphasised that "companies must try to work on the entry price product ranges, which are important, and on creativity, which remains the driving force of this sector". Capasa emphasised that 'companies must try to work on the entry price product ranges, which are important, and on the creativity that remains the driving force of this sector'.

Creativity will have a big space in Milan, from 17 to 21 January, on the occasion of the Milan Fashion Week Men's collectionwhich has 68 appointments on the agenda, including 20 fashion shows, 16 physical and four digital. If brands such as Gucci and Etro have opted for a single show in February, there are many young people on the calendar: Magliano, Simon Cracker, Federico Cina, Victor Hart (in digital). "It is a strategic appointment and I am happy that there is room for young people," said Alessia Cappello, Councillor of the Milan City Council with responsibility for Fashion. I invite the big brands to make an active commitment to enhance the new generations: supporting young people means not only enriching the creative panorama, but also ensuring the competitiveness and future dynamism of the entire sector'.