Discover made in Italy

Italian products appeal to international brands, who would like to produce in Italy but often don’t know how to come into contact with companies. Assocalzaturifici is launching the “Discover Made in Italy” project in cooperation with the platform Italian Artisan to bring together and promotes synergies between Italian companies and foreign counterparties. Assocalzaturifici’s Chair, Siro Badon, explains the project.

Discover made in Italy is a project promoted by Assocalzaturifici in cooperation with Italian Artisan. What drove the Association to support this platform?

“At this difficult time economically, we want to provide tangible support to companies in the footwear sector in order to promote Italian manufacturing throughout the world. Discover Made in Italy is a project we are promoting alongside Italian Artisan, the B2B platform which seeks to bring together international brands and Italian manufacturers.  We are very confident this will soon be the point of reference for brands who want to produce a premium/luxury product in Italy, in synergy with local companies.”

What characteristics do Italian companies wanting to take part in this project need to have?
“The socio-economic fabric of our sector is made up of small and medium sized enterprises that are well rooted in the areas they were founded and operate in. These are the types of companies we have in mind for this project. Quite often, for a variety of reasons, including structural reasons, companies are not able to seize the strategic opportunities of internationalisation. Unlike large companies who are more likely to have the financial and managerial resources. We are now dealing with a globalised market and it’s important to rise to the challenges and exploit this new scenario. Digitalisation is also one of the key drivers for businesses and the platform we are promoting recognises this. We want to create a solid network of relations between international players and markets and the finest authentic artisanal Italian production.

How can international companies actually have the opportunity to lower their production costs through this platform?
“We have tried to satisfy a requirement that emerged from the sector. This consisted in bringing international brands to produce in Italy and tap into our heritage of craftsmanship. We are moving in the opposite direction to normal relocation. In this case, international designers and brands are contacting our companies and entrusting the creation of their products to Italian excellence and good taste. They meet through the online platform and then start producing in Italy. Members can sign up for free on Italian Artisan and receive assistance during the entire procedure for the creation of the company profiles. The conversion data and the case histories show that company presentations and attention to detail have contributed significantly to the creation of leads between international brands and manufacturers. We have also created packages with coaching and specific tutoring services which are available for a fee.”