From supply chain transparency to environmental sustainability, fashion debates the future

"The fashion system is under attack, but most of the problems are ours and no one else can solve them," Luca Sburlati, president of Confindustria Moda, dictated the change of pace at the fourth edition of the Venice Sustainable Fashion Forum that opened yesterday (and closes today) on the Island of San Giorgio, organised with The European House Ambrosetti (Teha) and Confindustria Veneto Est.

The judicial enquiries of the Court of Milan, which in recent months have involved major luxury brands accused of facilitating a supply chain formed by Chinese companies that exploit fellow countrymen, often without contracts and without residence permits, risks causing serious reputational damage to the entire Made in Italy, and to European fashion production in general. Running for cover is necessary," the Forum emerged, "not least to defend companies that work seriously and adhere to the protocol for the legality of contracts in the fashion supply chain, signed last May at the Prefecture of Milan.

The tools to do this are almost ready, and they go in a new direction: that of all-round collaboration between brands and the subcontractors that produce for them, no longer considered mere suppliers but partners. There are four projects on the table, the final objective of which must be to harmonise with each other. Confindustria Moda is working on a digital platform (with technical partner Ympact) to define the requirements and verification methods that allow the supply chain to be controlled in terms of legality and social compliance. It will be an open source system that everyone can use on a voluntary basis,' explained Sburlati, 'and that will select the virtuous companies, thus eliminating pirate contracts. To do this, however, the supply chain must be fairly remunerated, because if brand managers are only paid on the basis of supply cost cuts, we are heading towards illegality.

Accanto alla sostenibilità sociale occorre armonizzare quella ambientale. Otto grandi brand della moda - tra cui gruppo Kering, Prada e Ermenegildo Zegna – stanno collaborando alla costruzione di un questionario comune per acquisire dalla catena di fornitura i dati strategici su energia, acqua e rifiuti. «Il questionario è già stato sottoposto a cento aziende del tessile, abbigliamento, concia, accessori moda e accessori metallici in Italia – hanno spiegato Chiara Morelli di Prada, Fulvio Benetti di Zegna e Mickael Maniez di Kering – e ora è pronto per essere messo sul web, in modo che tutti possano scaricarlo. I

The National Chamber of Fashion and the Fédération de la haute couture et de la mode are also working on the creation of a common list of sustainability criteria, while in Parliament the regulation, included in the SME bill, introducing a certification of conformity and a database of companies adopting it, is starting its journey.