A consultant for companies operating across the knitwear sector, from spinning mills to design, production, and logistics; a professor of Textile Technology at Reggio Emilia and previously a lecturer in Textile Technology at the Carpi Technical Institute, Stefano Gelosini, the author of the column “Experts’ Opinion,” which will debut in October, is also an inventor. He created an automatic system based on scanning electron microscopy (SEM) for the recognition of wool-cashmere blends through image analysis. This system was subsequently patented by Max Mara.
Your professional career has a common thread…thread. How and when did your passion for the world of yarns begin?
I started back in 1983, when I was a sample technician at what was then one of Italy’s largest knitwear factories: Umberto Severi in Carpi. The company had several locations, including the San Lorenzo spinning mill and the Loria continuous fiber twisting mill. I was responsible for programming the knitting machines, but I was very interested in learning about yarns because, coming from a family that worked with metals, I knew how essential it was to understand the material you were working with. I’ve always believed the same was true for yarns: it was—and is—necessary to know yarns and fibers and fully understand their characteristics to develop valuable projects.
To give shape to this awareness, some additional professional steps proved useful…
Yes, after my experience at Umberto Severi, I joined a textile analysis laboratory, and this allowed me to further expand my knowledge of raw materials. After joining Imax (Max Mara) as yarn quality control manager, I was subsequently able to visit numerous spinning mills and collect technical data on different types of yarn using a multi-tester system, the Yarntester, allowing me to compare the data between different spinning mills using the same yarn type.
Your journey didn’t end there, though…
No, in fact, after ten years I joined Fuzzi as Operations Director. This knitwear factory, in addition to knitwear, also produced three different types of yarn, so I managed the entire process, from purchasing raw materials to producing carded yarns, collaborating with subcontractors in Biella. My journey, however, ended with my arrival at EZ, where I handled combed yarns with superfine wools, up to a micron of 12.5 microns, among the most difficult to use for yarns with counts up to Nm 120.
Of all these experiences, which do you think has shaped you the most, and why?
Looking back on my career, there isn’t a particular moment. I’d say that each stage helped develop my professional curiosity, from my experience in the lab to my time at Imax, where I worked with both the lab and the purchasing department. Fuzzi also represented a milestone because it allowed me to oversee both the production of knitwear and yarns. The opportunity at EZ was also important, where I was able to work on the extreme quality of Viçuna and superfine wools. This company certainly gave me greater autonomy in the pursuit of quality solutions that were less sought after at other companies.
How would you describe the world of yarns today?
Compared to the time of my first visits to Pitti Filati, when spinning mills were truly the central pillar of the knitwear world, much has changed today: everything has become extremely frenetic. A frenzy that was transmitted first by the style offices and then by the sales teams, who, with the aim of filling stores as quickly as possible, have accelerated the pace of the industry. It’s no coincidence that many brands are currently facing eroded margins due to unsold garments. To keep up with this trend, spinning mills have invested heavily in stock services, making significant and sometimes unprofitable investments.
Is there a solution to this perpetual race?
I think we need to regain greater rationality and follow the market’s frenzy less, which often leads to sending the wrong signals.
Compared to the past, how has the compact changed, and in what direction is it going?
In the 1970s and early 1980s, there wasn’t enough yarn to meet all the knitwear mills’ demands. For this reason, the spinning mills decided who to supply the yarn to, and many knitwear mills, despite receiving orders, were unable to produce. At that time, the only significant foreign suppliers were England for carded yarns and Germany for some worsted yarns intended for weaving. For the rest, the entire supply chain was concentrated in Italy, from the purchase of raw materials, such as wool and cashmere, to the production of worsted, carded, and fancy yarns, to the silk mills in Como and the spinning mills of synthetic and man-made fibers. The current situation is radically different. Clothing production, in general, has moved to other areas of the world, and with it, many semi-finished product productions.
What do you think is the best path to follow to stay ahead?
I believe the way to continue making a difference is to focus on high-quality products and service. Competing solely on price is very complicated and requires enormous energy.
What are the critical issues facing the sector?
Competition is fierce, and the investments required for a spinning mill are significant. Therefore, a thorough market analysis is needed to develop products capable of attracting consumers, particularly those in Asian markets.
Does the Italian market have strengths it can rely on to effectively approach the market?
We have the ability to recognize what makes a product truly different from others in our DNA. However, we need to recover some of the knowledge we are gradually losing. We need to abandon the idea that everything is standardized and explain that wool is not just one thing. It’s a bit like wine: there is bulk wine and there is Barolo: both are wines, but they only have the type of plant from which they derive in common.
What do you think the future of the sector holds?
To survive, we must do what others can’t. I find it very difficult to compete solely on price. Significant investments would be required to achieve large production volumes, a prospect I don’t see today, especially considering the very low margins and severe market fragmentation.
The solution?
I remember when I was working at Imax, a spinning mill offered a yarn that was so successful that it couldn’t even meet a third of market demand. I therefore believe that investments should be directed primarily toward the research and development of new products.
This idea is also shared by your partner in the KIP Studio project, Barbara Perchinella. How did you meet and how did the idea of collaborating arise?
We met at In.Co. in Verrone. I came from Agnona, where I was Production Director of the knitwear division. When production was integrated into the knitwear factory, it was necessary to expand the technical team. Barbara was a programmer at the time, and I decided to make her a technician. Over time, thanks to her determination, she has become one of the most knowledgeable and well-rounded professionals I’ve ever worked with. The idea to collaborate was entirely hers; I was more inclined to travel by motorcycle.
What is the project you’re working on?
The initial project was much less challenging than I imagined. Barbara wrote articles on LinkedIn, and I followed up on her content by replying to her posts. Given the response Barbara was getting, we decided to delve deeper into the topics she was covering and realized there was a real interest among people in understanding and learning more about this sector. From there, KIP studio was born, with the primary goal of sharing the experience and knowledge accumulated over the years.
Who are you talking to?
A wide variety of people: from company owners to technicians, from stylists to flat-bed machine programmers. The intention is to become a point of reference for finding answers to specific situations, from design to industrialization and production, from raw materials to the delivery of the finished garment.
What’s the market response to your initiative?
I currently see a promising response, interest is growing, and many people are actively participating in the discussions and insights we offer.
Looking to the future, what potential upgrades do you envision for the project?
Definitely in-person courses and proceduralization projects, which represent one of the most serious gaps I’ve personally encountered within many knitwear factories. People often tend to confuse personal experience with the value of corporate know-how. I always give a very simple example: what would the value of the company be if the most experienced person were to lose it? When the know-how belongs to the company, its value remains. Know-how is made up of procedures, processes, proper data collection, organizational systems, and also capable people who increase efficiency. However, when everything is based exclusively on individual experience and the “we’ve always done it this way” mentality, the company’s economic value becomes more fragile and precarious.
How did you reach this conclusion?
Having followed production for years, I’ve visited knitwear factories throughout Italy and in several Eastern European countries, as well as in Turkey, Hong Kong, Thailand, and China. The facilities that demonstrate the greatest capacity for process management are those that are truly organized. It may seem obvious, but it’s not. In Italy, many businesses are still managed by highly skilled technicians who work without management systems, or use them incorrectly. As a customer of these facilities, I often felt uneasy.
Let’s get to the collaboration where you write a column on the Tblog. How did you get in touch with Tollegno 1900?
Barbara was contacted directly through LinkedIn. I’ve known Tollegno 1900 since 1990, when I joined Imax, but that’s a pretty long story. Perhaps it will emerge in some of the topics we’ll explore in the “Experts Speak Out” column…