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Proposte 2022 - Here we go!

Less than two weeks to Proposte 2022, which will enliven Villa Erba, in Cernobbio, on April 26, 27 and 28. Numerous new entries and initiatives mark this twenty-ninth edition, but some things will remain the same: Tuesday 26 and Wednesday 27 the Trade Show will be open to visitors from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., while on Thursday 28 it will open at 9 a.m. and close at 4 p.m., as always. The hours remain the same, and so do the access modalities.

There will be 69 companies, 40 foreign and 29 Italian, that will once again participate in Proposte, which they believe to be the premier showcase for Furnishing Fabrics and Curtains.

CORONAVIRUS EMERGENCY – ARRANGEMENTS FOR ACCESS

Exhibitors’ Forum and Fierasmart 365

This edition was again organized with the precious support of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation and the International Trade Agency ICE, which allowed the development of a series of interesting initiatives for the three-day event, such as the Exhibitors’ Forum, the installation featuring previews of the new collections, located in the Padiglione Centrale: a combination of materials, designs and colors of textiles from all the Exhibitors.

Online for the three days of the Fair and the months to follow, fierasmart365.propostefair.it is the digital platform of Proposte, designed to offer exhibitors a virtual display window.

Special Areas

In the Serra Platani, special areas will be set up, dedicated to CELC, the European Confederation of Linen and Hemp, which will present innovative products in linen, particularly intended for high-end interior design, and ADM, the Agency of Excises, Customs and Monopolies, which will illustrate the processes by which their laboratory technicians analyze fibers and fabrics, and will also present the customs institutes that facilitate exports. A special presentation event is scheduled on Tuesday 26 at 11:30 a.m. at the Serra Platani. 

Aperitif in the park

On April 26 and 27, at 5:30 p.m., Proposte is pleased to offer exhibitors, clients, visitors and members of the press an aperitif in the splendid setting of the park at Villa Erba. In case of inclement weather, the aperitif will be held in the Padiglione Centrale.

StartUp and beIT

Inside the Exhibition Center, in addition to the desks dedicated to Italian and international sector publications, the big news this year is the presence of two start-ups in the Ala Cernobbio: The Id Factory and Twinone are supported by Italian StartUp, from ICE Agency, and will present new solutions in Product Digitization and Traceability & Supply Chain Evolution.

Along the Ala Lario and Ala Cernobbio, a video will be shown; Italy is simply extraordinary: beIT, in support of the promotional campaign for Made in Italy goods, Italian exports and the internationalization of the national economic system.

International Observatory

Just a few minutes from the Exhibition Center at Villa Erba, the Sheraton Lake Como Hotel and Spazio Como will be the venue for the VII edition of the International Observatory, where, during the same days and hours as Proposte, 24 companies of the international furnishing textile sector will be exhibiting their products. Sector operators can use their electronic Proposte badges to access the Observatory directly, or they can be accredited at the reception desk. Our shuttle bus service provides a direct connection from the main entrance to Villa Erba.

App, website and social networks

Starting next week, a new application will be ready for download: a webapp with lots of new features, including push notifications that will be sent out during the Trade Show to update users in real time. In the days immediately prior to Proposte, the new website will also be uploaded online, with new graphics and new functions. Proposte extends its presence on the social media: #ProposteFair and #Proposte2022 are the main hashtags for this edition.

by Admin Proposte

Proposte 2022 - The Exhibitors

On April 26, 27, and 28, 69 exhibitors will participate in the 29^th edition of Proposte at Villa Erba, nine more than last year. Four of them are new entries while other important companies have decided to return to Cernobbio after a period of absence. The presence of international exhibitors is significant with 40 foreign participants and 29 Italian.  For the first time at Proposte are Steiner 1888 from Austria, G.M. Fabrics from India and the Italian companies Giò Emi and Tendaggi Paradiso.

Once again, and this year even more, the new entries are evidence of the fact that Proposte is a key appointment for the producers of high-end textiles and textile shades on the global market.

“After two years of the pandemic, the world has not yet returned to pre-Covid time, and the Russian-Ukrainian war is now increasing concerns on the human and social front. Yet, compared to the gloomiest months of 2020 and 2021, the situation in our industry seems to be going back to normality and traveling and business are increasingly becoming part of our daily life again. Let’s hope that there will be no turning back,” noted Proposte President Piercarlo Viganò.

In the meantime, the Proposte Secretariat is working on the development of several special projects to increase the visibility of the collections presented by the exhibitors. This year too, there will be an installation in the Central Hall – called “Exhibitor Forum” – with a summary overview of the products that visitors will find in the booths. The Proposte marketplace will also be accessible at the following link: fierasmart365.propostefair.it. The objective of this initiative is to provide Proposte exhibitors with a virtual showcase extending the physical trade show to the digital platform. All this and even more was made possible thanks to the precious support of the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation and the Italian Trade Agency ICE.

DOWNLOAD THE EXHIBITORS LIST

by Admin Proposte

PROPOSTE 2021 - GREEN PASS FOR ENTRY INTO THE EXHIBITION CENTRE

In accordance with current legislation and with the aim to protect companies, visitors, suppliers and staff, all those entering the expo centres while trade shows are underway, as of September 2021, will be required in addition to the entry e-badge, to be in possession of a ‘green pass’ (those without this pass will be able to do a rapid antigen test at the Exhibition Centre entrance from 8.00 a.m. to 6.00 p.m., paying a special price).
The Certification “green pass” attests one of the following conditions:

• conclusion of the vaccination cycle or administration of the first vaccine dose (only after 15 days from the same)
• the negative result of a molecular or rapid antigen test in the previous 48 hours
• recovery from COVID-19 in the previous six months.

HOW THE VERIFICATION TAKES PLACE

Verification of the authenticity of the certificate is carried out by authorized operators in compliance with privacy.

The interested party, at the request of the verifier, exhibits a valid identity document for the purpose of verifying the correspondence of the personal data in the document.

It should be noted that, after the display of the green certification, it will not be processed, retained, tracked, or stored, in accordance with the provisions of the Data Protection Authority.
Please note that to access to the venue, the following is requested:

• Together with this e-badge, you will also be required to show your ‘green pass’. The e-badge must be shown on digital device;
• Access to people with fever over 37.5 ° C is explicitly prohibited. In this regard, workstations for measuring body temperature have been set up at all pedestrian and vehicle access gates;
• It is mandatory to wear special face masks for the entire duration of the stay inside the venue;
• It is recommended always to keep the interpersonal distance of at least 1 meter.

Currently the following vaccines have been authorized in Italy: Comirnaty of Pfizer-BioNtech / Spikevax (Moderna) / Vaxzevria of AstraZeneca / Janssen (Johnson & Johnson).

In compliance with the privacy policy and in compliance with the legislation in force, a register of attendance is maintained for a period of 14 days.

by Admin Proposte

Proposte 2021 - The Exhibitors

Proposte 2021, dates are confirmed

One hundred days to go before the next edition of Proposte, which is confirmed at Villa Erba in Cernobbio on September 7, 8 and 9.  The dates mark the important and long-awaited return to face-to-face meetings for the presentation of the new collections and business activities carried out in compliance with all the currently applicable safety regulations.

The exhibitors of  Proposte 2021

We are pleased to share with you the list of the sixty-one exhibitors that have so far confirmed their participation in Proposte 2021: many confirmations and, as usual, new entries that are the result of our ongoing search in the universe of the most important textile companies worldwide.

Consult the list of exhibitors of Proposte 2021 alphabetical order

Consult the list of exhibitors of Proposte 2021 by Country

A trade show in total safety

Proposte together with Villa Erba, is preparing the event to ensure that visitors will be able to view the new collections in person and in total safety, in compliance with the currently applicable Italian national regulations in line with the latest recommendations of the health authorities.

We would like to remind you that, for everyone's safety, it is mandatory to wear a protective mask and maintain one-meter social distancing inside the trade show.  The spatial layout at Villa Erba is absolutely compatible with the required social distancing rules to be respected both in the exhibition areas and inside the individual booths. An additional guarantee for compatibility with the currently applicable spacing regulations is the fact that the exhibition center of Villa Erba, a multipurpose and technologically advanced infrastructure, has been chosen by the Italian health authorities as a vaccination hub for the Province of Como.

As always, visitors will have an opportunity to visit the exhibitors' booths and view the new collections in person. Visitors must wear a mask and sanitize their hands beforehand. The collections can be viewed and touched in full tranquility after sanitizing hands with the sanitizing gel, preserving the fundamental tactile experience.

To facilitate compliance with security protocols, all paper formats - information materials, catalog, badges, etc. - will be replaced by digital media - easily accessible by visitors on their electronic devices.

All the services necessary for the normal operation of the event will be guaranteed and the sanitation and cleaning of the exhibition center will be intensified in collaboration with Villa Erba

by Admin Proposte

WORLD FABRIC OUTLOOK

Textile ennobling: the very heart of research and progress
In a hypothetical analytical journey through the "state of the art" of the textile furniture supply chain, textile ennobling would be one of the most important stops. As a matter of fact, this production stage has become the most crucial one in adding value and enhancing Italian and European excellence in the sector. No one better than Marino Vago, president of Sistema Moda Italia, could be best suited to give us an insight into this production sector, not so much for his institutional role, but rather for his deep-rooted entrepreneurial history. Already back in 1995 Marino and his brother Augusto turned their family business (specializing in the finishing of cotton, linen, viscose, polyester, wool and cashmere yarns) into one of Europe’s companies most committed to sustainability in processing. Over the years their entirely sustainable textile production has received many international acknowledgments. We asked Marino Vago to tell us what "textile ennoblement" means within a supply chain that is determined to maintain its leading role in worldwide excellence. "The Italian ennobling sector is undoubtedly an example of the concrete biodiversity of the Italian textile system” Marino Vago said, and went on to explain that “this system is based on a dense network of companies that are ready to face the most topical production issues and, in many cases, to anticipate them even. The first and most important change that I would like to stress demonstrates that in the past this sector was highly fragmented into a myriad of dyers, finishers, printers, etc.. Today instead we consider textile ennoblement as a stage of the process. This gives even more strength to all the companies working in this sector and stimulates the research and development activities that make a decisive contribution to the progress of the entire textile supply chain. No one today would ever underestimate the importance of the ennoblement phase, as opposed to the past, when it was an almost invisible industrial process.
All this has triggered a virtuous circle, undoubtedly placing our sector at the cutting edge of technology when dealing with very important issues such as: process innovation for sustainability (through appropriate industrial information technology); rapid processing of increasingly complex and fairly different yarn blends (such as natural, recycled and artificial yarns); focus on technical and highly performing fabrics in a sector where Italian companies can now compete on an equal footing with German specialists, sometimes even overtaking them; and, last but not least, home and furnishing fabrics.
Today the world of textile finishing not only contributes to the excellence of Italian and European products, but also represents the most advanced example of research and development. Just think of the importance of the ennoblement/finishing sector for the traceability chain".
This being said, a question arises spontaneously: is the value of the finishing process perceived by the buyers visiting Proposte every year as a contributor to the excellence of new textile products? “The top of the range Italian and European textile supply chains no longer thrive solely on offering beautiful fabrics" - the SMI President said. “It is not only the high degree of creativity that makes Italian products better. Excellence means professionalism, valuable research, speed and flexibility. Therefore, we should never underestimate the importance of professional training, a subject to which we are particularly sensitive and where the ennoblement sector plays a fundamental role. Being desperately price-focussed is humiliating and prevents relevant developments from taking place. This must be tirelessly communicated to the key players on the international market. Let me conclude with a parting shot. All research efforts in our world are geared towards sustainability, which entails costs that will obviously have to be reflected in the final fabric price. Those who are not willing to pay such a price should be aware that their current short-termed saving or gain – regardless of how you call it – will ultimately be paid by the Planet”.

by Admin Proposte

TRENDS, DESIGN AND DISTRIBUTION

Andrea Favaretto Rubelli: Proposte must be a driving and proactive force geared towards textile excellence.
Interviewing Andrea Favaretto Rubelli does not only mean asking questions to an absolute protagonist of the worldwide textile scene. It means sharing views and ideas with someone who has a global observatory on the entire furnishing sector like few others in the world. The Rubelli company was set up in the nineteenth century, and this is the 5th generation of family entrepreneurs in textile publishing. Still, it would be too reductive to describe in this way this Venetian enterprise of excellence. The Rubellis are for sure textile publishers, but they also own a weaving mill that was refurbished just over two years ago in Cucciago, in the very heart of the Como silk district, where they produce large contract projects. Rubelli Casa and Donghia are the furniture manufacturing brand names and collections that have quickly obtained great success in the United States as well as internationally. Andrea Favaretto Rubelli mirrors the universe of buyers visiting Proposte every year. We met him in January at the end of a series of exhibitions that was quite exhausting. His analysis was clear and not entirely negative: "We have been working well - he explained - fewer buyers, but good quality business". In short, our interlocutor is not pessimistic, in spite of the clouds that are gathering on the horizon following the coronavirus epidemic, whose magnitude and repercussions on the worldwide economy cannot still be fully assessed. We asked him where he thinks the textile market will be heading in the near future and how he judges Proposte from the buyer/visitor's point of view.
Concerning the first topic, Rubelli gives a clear-cut and concrete statement: "Today the western world’s approach to textile products has radically changed. There is a very strong and almost obsessive demand for performance that is not only limited to the Contract area. Designers, architects and planners, even in the residential sector, all speak the common language of performance and sustainability. Fortunately, however, there is still an important niche of customers worldwide who are looking for silk and luxury products. At Rubelli, we are determined to meet the demand for more performance without giving up the niche of clients who are looking for silk products and beauty without compromise. It is a kind of “run with the hare and hunt with the hounds” attitude, meaning that on the one hand we intend to meet the demand for more performance, while on the other we are trying to make clients acquainted with more enticing products that will make them overcome the limitations that an excessive demand for performance implies. On top of this, the global market requires flexibility and speed, therefore service at all levels. I will never stop considering Italian creativity as a winning tool, but I feel that at this stage this is almost taken for granted, it is indispensable but not enough. There is still a lot to do in the field of sustainability, recycling, reusing and traceability. Our sector has been dealing with these subjects for only a short time and this is precisely why we must consider everything from the point of view of the supply chain. We need signals, indicators and indications coming from the production side. I don't want to say aesthetic features are not important but at this stage, failing to realize that the entire market, from production to final consumption, is looking for meaningful, content-laden answers would be a mistake", as sustainability seems to be the only possible option going forward. The key players we interviewed from last October to date have all stressed the importance of product and process sustainability. More than a trend this represents a radical change in the way we approach the market.
Answering our second question Andrea Favaretto Rubelli affirms: “As far as Proposte is concerned, I can firmly say that the exhibition is certainly an outstanding and irreplaceable event, that will have to continue following closely the evolution of the global market in order to maintain its leadership. I have just attended the inauguration of Milano Unica (publisher’s note: a Milanese prominent event devoted to fashion fabrics for the clothing sector) - and I noticed the high-quality level of the Trends area (“Tendenze”) created for this event. I would like to see something similar at Proposte, a synthesis of the most outstanding themes displayed through the exhibitors' collections, stressing Proposte’s guiding role and providing indications on the short-term future of textiles for the furnishing sector. Guidance should be the key contribution of todays’ fairs and exhibitions. It is no longer just a matter of business, but rather a matter of sharing a common project-oriented culture throughout the entire sector. For the same reason, Proposte must be truly daring in adopting strict selection criteria. These have already contributed to the great success of the event over the years. Going forward, the exhibitors’ evaluation system could be more closely linked to the system of European environmental certifications. Initially this could happen in the form of a soft adjustment scheme and then gradually become more compliant. This process would make a valuable contribution to the cause of sustainability and would encourage producers in the textile/furniture world to concretely invest in it".

by Admin Proposte

MADE IN PROPOSTE

An identikit of the sector through the exhibitors at Proposte
In addition to being the world's leading event in furnishing fabrics and curtains, Proposte is also an aggregate sample of outstanding companies. This enables us to make a reliable analysis of the market situation, from both an industrial and an international business point of view. As we did not want to miss this opportunity a 7-question survey was circulated among all exhibitors. Our sector represents a very small sample of operators and therefore it is not easy to gather data for in-depth studies. Triumphalisms being set aside, this piece of research represents the first aggregate analysis of the sector in a long time. The questions we asked - apart from the last one concerning the dramatic issue of the Coronavirus epidemic and its economic consequences - were mainly about the economic trends in 2019, the forecasts for the year 2020 and customer and market segmentation.
We decided to split the charts into the two macro-families, representing Italian and foreign exhibitors, and kept all data strictly anonymous. We did not carry out company interviews, as the survey was aiming at providing general news about the state of the entire production system and of the business environment developing around home textile products.
One thing should be stressed though: our questionnaires were circulated before the Covid-19 pandemic exploded in all its drama. The data concerning the 2019 financial statements, as well as customers’ segmentation and the reference markets are still valid, but in the light of the day-to-day evolution of the situation our suggestion is that the last question concerning the impact of the pandemic on the market should be evaluated more cautiously. One should therefore consider the answers provided more as "wishful thinking" options rather than as real indications, since nobody is currently able to make predictions on the real impact of this dramatic situation on the international business development of even only one sector.

So, let's start with the first question: how do you evaluate the 2019 turnover result for your company? (Graph 1/Graph 1A) We noted straightaway that the sector was not performing too badly: among Italian companies stability prevails (54% of them remained at the level of 2018) whereas 20% of them were up 10%. The end-of-year results were regarded as "good" by 32% of the foreign companies, almost in line with the turnover levels of the previous year (35%). Perhaps considering the sector in good health is too far-fetched, but apart from some individual cases, the business level was not bad.

The second question was: what are your first sensations for 2020 after the January fairs? (Graph 2/Graph 2A). Here the opinions expressed by the Italian and international production chains differ more markedly.
Among Italian producers a certain pessimism prevails: 46% indicated their sentiment to be "negative", while among foreigner companies the percentages are quite different with a watchful 50% choosing the answer "normal" and 38% being "positive". The reason for these different opinions could be a different segmentation of the clientele, mainly "multi-channel" for foreign companies, more linked to the world of textile publishing and furniture production for Italian manufacturers. Clearly, the latter is solely our own theory, that we have elaborated after a detailed analysis of the data.

Let's come to the third question (Graph 3/Graph 3A): what is the export share on your total turnover? Frankly speaking, the answers surprised us. Italians were less than half the number of foreigner interviewees, but they are the strongest exporters. In fact, only 13% of them indicated an export share of "up to 50% of their turnover”, while 80% of them said that their export share lies between 70 and 80% of their turnover. Among foreigners instead almost one third (27%) said that their export level does not exceed 50%, while 38% of them declares that their exports reach a level of 70%. Moreover, many producers basically only export their products (22% of them said that "over 90% of their turnover is made abroad").

The fourth question (Graph 4/Graph 4A) was whether there had been any variation in export levels in 2019. The answers clearly show a flat market for Italian companies and the results match with those obtained from the first question, where companies that reported a "negligible" growth and those that recorded stagnating export figures were equally represented in the 47% share. The market is decidedly livelier for foreign companies: 37% of them reported at least a +5% export growth, 5% recorded a 10% increase and ten respondents out of 100 reported an even "excellent" growth level totalling a double digit turnover increase.

Question 5 (Chart 5/Graph 5A): How is your customer base broken down? In this case the analysis was a bit more complex: first of all, let us say from the very start that we have broken down the data and calculated simple mathematical averages for each item. These are global evaluations that we have tried to deepen by providing the incidence % for each type of customer vs the total number of respondents, the mathematical percentage of the channel over the total number of respondents and the percentage weight range for the respondents in each channel. Considering the specificity of each company there could be substantial variations in the percentage figures, but we intended to provide a global figure and a mathematical average is the quickest and clearest way to proceed.
The answers show that textile publishers have the lion’s share, with the Italians in a leading position. Indeed, Italian textile publishers and furniture manufacturers serve almost two-thirds of the clientele, while foreigner textile publishers have a broader channel segmentation with the contract sector growing further and wholesalers becoming more relevant.

As for the sixth question (Graph 6/Graph 6A) – the market is segmented in geographical area utilizing the same methodological approach adopted previously. All interviewees answered the question and there seems to be a greater level of homogeneity between Italian and foreigner producers. Well over half of the fabric/curtain business is made in Europe, while another very important area is of course represented by the United States of America. Foreign exhibitors are only slightly more active in other continents showing somewhat better results in Africa, Oceania and South America.

In conclusion a question was asked concerning the lethal coronavirus (Graph 7/ Graph 7A): we prompted an opinion on the economic repercussions of the pandemic on our sector. Clearly, no one is yet able to foretell what is going to happen especially in the economic sphere. However, we feel that it was our duty to also explore opinions and sentiments. Italians have a more pessimistic attitude (approximately 30% of them think that the pandemic is going to affect them "a lot"), while abroad the idea that this pandemic will adversely impact on the economy of the sector is remarkably more contained (72%). Finally, please note that some Italians very frankly answered "I don't know" (while some of them think that even the national supply chain could benefit from it). No Italian interviewee believes that the Coronavirus crises will have no consequences, as opposed to foreign respondents, for whom this opinion holds true for 8% of respondents.

Download pdf graphs (Size: 770KB)

by Admin Proposte

PROPOSTE 2020 | THE NEW DATE

Save the new dates!

As Proposte 2020 is now going to take place from September 23^rd to 25^th. The new dates replace those originally set forth from April 27^th to 29^th. Location is always Villa Erba in Cernobbio, as we want to be always close to the market.

Due to the worldwide emergency caused by the Coronavirus (Covid-19), the entire European fair calendar is subject to changes and postponements. The Management of Proposte has considered all possible solutions in order to implement the best strategy in the face of the emergency and has come to the conclusion that shifting the 2020 dates to September is the best choice. President Piercarlo Viganò explained the decision as follows: "We started with the common intention of confirming the April date to give a sign of positivity and continuity to the worldwide market. The situation has evolved on a day-by-day basis, both internally and internationally. The strong reduction in air traffic and the cancellations of flights to Italy ordered by some governments and airlines has led us to a forced choice. Therefore, we have decided to postpone the event to ensure that everyone has the opportunity to visit our exhibition in full tranquility and continue their business as usual. It is a decision we have taken for reasons of force majeure, but it is certainly the best solution for the 2020 edition of Proposte in this difficult year".

The choice made by the Board of Proposte will therefore make it possible to give continuity to our international event devoted to furnishing fabrics and curtains and to allow exhibitors to present their collections to the traditional public of Proposte, that is made of a rich number of professional and qualified operators.

Please, continue to follow us on or social networks and on our website www.propostefair.it to be constantly updated with the latest news that Proposte will be reserving for you from now until September.

by Admin Proposte