Leather companies celebrated at Sustainable Fashion Awards
Leather manufacturers and brands were among companies honoured at the Camera Nazionale della Moda Italiana’s (CNMI) Sustainable Fashion Awards.
Thirty companies were selected as finalists, recognised for their commitment to craftsmanship, the circular economy, innovation and education.
Brunello Cucinelli (pictured), founder of the eponymous brand, recieved one of the top accolades, the Visionary Award, for his “crucial contribution to reviving the culture of beauty, creating a new and virtuous enterprise model, preserving and promoting the value of Italian crafts and manual skills and harnessing technology and artificial intelligence to humanism”.
His company, which sells leather jackets for more than £7,500, plans to double the size of its Solomeo factory and open new facilities in Abruzzo and Umbria.
The Piquadro Group operates in the leather accessories sector through its Piquadro, The Bridge and Lancel brands. As the group is carbon neutral for Scopes 1 and 2, Piquadro financed the carbon neutrality of the Corno alle Scale ski resort by purchasing carbon credits generated through the reforestation projects. The group has offset the CO2 emissions associated with the manufacture of best-selling products through carbon credits.
The group also donated money to the Emilia-Romagna region after the recent floods and supports associations that manage creative therapy camps for children suffering from serious or chronic illnesses.
Leathergoods brand Bottega Veneta was commended for its commitment to preserving its artisanal savoir-faire. The company established its first leatherworking school in Vicenza in 2006 and last year launched Accademia Labor et Ingenium.
Based between the Bottega Veneta atelier in Montebello Vicentino and a new space at the brand’s manufacturing site in Povolaro Dueville, the academy serves as a workshop where employees, new hires and external students can learn from master artisans through training activities, workshops and courses.
