OTB celebrates the Foundation’s 20th anniversary: 380 projects have been launched since 2006
Renzo Rosso: “In my vision of a circular economy, part of the value we create through our companies must be returned to society and used to help those in need.” The initiatives range from supporting women’s entrepreneurship in Afghanistan to tackling bullying and cyberbullying in Italian schools
Over the last 20 years, the world of fashion – but also the world as a whole – has changed radically. The issue of sustainability has also entered this sphere, first quietly and then in a disruptive manner (before the pressure eased off once again): environmental sustainability, with regulations on transparency and circularity set to govern the sector in the near future; and social sustainability, with an ever-increasing focus on the quality of life and working conditions of those who produce fashion and luxury goods.
Some companies have been working on this for some time now, and among them is OTB, the Only the Brave group founded by Renzo Rosso: originally built around Diesel, it is now a holding company comprising brands such as Maison Margiela, Jil Sander, Marni, Viktor&Rolf, Staff International and Brave Kids, with a total turnover of 1.7 billion euros projected for 2025.
From women’s entrepreneurship to the fight against bullying: the Otb Foundation’s commitments
Otb has recently celebrated the 20th anniversary of its charitable organisation, the Otb Foundation: established in 2006 thanks to the vision of Renzo Rosso, it has carried out over 380 social development projects over the past two decades, reaching around 380,000 people worldwide. Its work supports the most vulnerable communities across four key areas of intervention: support for women, protection of young people, social integration and emergency response (including the 2016 earthquake in Central Italia, as well as the pandemic). The projects range from ‘Brave Business in a Bus’, the first mobile incubator for women’s entrepreneurship in Afghanistan, developed in collaboration with the organisation She Works For Peace, which has supported more than 5,000 women, to ‘Bye Bully’, the awareness-raising and prevention programme tackling bullying, cyberbullying and gender-based violence, carried out in collaboration with FARE X BENE ETS, which has involved 90,000 students. Furthermore, a fertility education and support project is set to be launched in early 2026.
The common thread has been the desire to generate a measurable social impact through each project and to empower people to create a better future for themselves and for others.
“In my vision of a circular economy, part of the value we create through our businesses must be returned to society and used to help those in need,” said Renzo Rosso, Chairman of the OTB Foundation and of the Group. “Through the Foundation, we have been doing this for twenty years, making resources, expertise and connections available to provide concrete solutions even where intervention is most challenging. In the social sphere, being brave (courageous, ed.) means having the courage to act without giving in to problems, even when they seem impossible to solve.” Rosso described himself as “proud of the people we have helped and the opportunities we have managed to create, because behind every achievement there is someone who has been able to make a fresh start, study, work or build a more independent life”.
