The foundation consolidates its promotional strategy in the far east and proposes a workshop on the widespread creativity of biella at the roots of the success of made in Italy.

A new promotional initiative from the “Biella The Art of Excellence.” Foundation with a mission in Tokyo on 11 and 12 November 2009 organised in collaboration with the I.C.E. (Italian institute for foreign trade) office in Tokyo and made possible thanks to support from the Piedmont Regional Authorities.

The aim is to set up strategic agreements with important representatives from the world of Japanese retail leading to profitable cooperation with a view to increasing trade of products made in Biella in particular and in Italy in general.

“After Hong Kong”, explained Luciano Donatelli, president of the “Biella The Art of Excellence.” Foundation, “we decided to consolidate our promotional strategy in the Far East by shifting to Japan. This choice goes against the trend followed by several top brands, because we believe that Japanese consumers are today entering a new phase: in the generalised consumer crisis that has existed for some years now on the market, today they are looking for quality and design at reasonable prices. An evolution that offers new opportunities for those districts, like Biella, that have a recognisable brand and strong cultural identity”.

This Japanese appointment is part of “Italia in Giappone 2009”, a system event started up in September by the Italian Embassy in collaboration with the I.C.E. and other Italian Institutions in Japan. It will end in December and the aim is to provide a chance for dialogue and debate on the value of products made in Biella as part of the evolution of the international market and business models used by several very successful companies in the sector. On 11 November there will be a workshop entitled “The widespread creativity of Biella at the roots of the success of made in Italy”, organised in collaboration with the I.C.E. office in Tokyo.

“The current crisis”, comments Marco della Croce, vice president of the “Biella The Art of Excellence.” Foundation, “has laid the foundations for rediscovery of local supply chains, not only for top quality craftsmanship products, but also for articles that require continual interaction between operators employed in the various highly specialised stages of production. Today more than ever therefore, local supply chains represent an opportunity for those companies who use the collaboration provided by these systems to develop their products, improve their creativity and find partners able to understand market needs. This widespread creativity is a characteristic of all the suppliers along the chain and this is the district’s real competitive advantage that we want to promote abroad.”

This transfer to Tokyo will also provide a privileged setting for the third “Biella The Art of Excellence. Award”, which this year will be given to a major fan of products made in Biella, representative of these articles in Japan. The 2009 edition sees selection of a prestigious name from the world of Japanese retail, who, over the years, has shown special appreciation of Biella quality.

The Biella district is known among Japanese sector operators as the most famous and most important Italian textile manufacturing district for menswear and they also admire its knitwear yarns.

In addition to the renowned quality recognised and esteemed by Japanese experts, Biella products are also well-known and popular in Japan thanks to their special production techniques and innovative system that guarantees product traceability.

The Foundation also intends to export its local culture with presentation of gastronomic specialities from Biella during a Gala Dinner organised in collaboration with the I.C.E. Tokyo, which will see participation by the most important Japanese retailers, distributors and importers of clothing. The aim is provide a cultural context for the manufacturing area.

A number of Biella-made articles will also be presented in a dedicated corner: fabrics, finished garments and accessories by Boglioli and the clothing produced for all the staff at the G8 summit held in L’Aquila last July, featuring textiles all made in Biella by the Cerruti and Ormezzano wool mills, menswear by Corneliani and womenswear by Annalisa Confezioni.