FLORENCE, ITALY – Two Florentine artisans and a Polimoda graduate fashion designer are the stars at Philadelphia’s Fashion Week. From 7 through 10 October, the great Macy’s U.S. department store chain will be hosting Benedetta Maracchi, a young fashion producer with the Marakita brand of fabric bags – featuring 100% Made in Florence design and materials – and Giovanna Montauti and Luca Parri, owners of – and jewellery crafters at – the historic Picchiani&Barlacchi company. This strictly Florentine delegation will be completed by Michael Mack of Michael Grey Footwear: a young American who studied at Polimoda in Florence and who now, back in the States, has launched his footwear design and manufacturing career.
The imitative was presented in Palazzo Vecchio by Nicoletta Mantovani, Commissioner for Cooperation and International Relations, Claudio Bianchi, Vice President of the Chamber of Commerce of Florence and Mario Curia, Managing Director of PromoFirenze.
«This event got its start after we renewed our twinship with Philadelphia last August», explained Commissioner Mantovani, «when, with Philadelphia’s Mayor Michael Nutter, we identified several courses of action for re-launching and consolidating the pact between our two cities – and one point on the program is economic relations. Now comes the first concrete action: thanks to the cooperative efforts of our city, the City of Philadelphia, our Chamber of Commerce and PromoFirenze, we were able to identify several Florentine artisans who will be joining a U.S. fashion designer from Polimoda as guests at the U.S. city’s Fashion Week and will be showing their products at Macy’s.»
«An opportunity like this, to showcase our artisans’ expertise abroad, is extremely important for us», Bianchi commented. «Florence has a great capacity for recounting the specificities of its territory and the professional expertise it has to offer. In today’s world, knowing how to publicize and make the most of one’s strong points is fundamental to rising to the challenge posed by globalization. An occasion like this offers a high-profile stage for our producers and for our whole city. This is why, with the Chamber of Commerce and PromoFirenze, we have worked to make this project a reality.»
«This project is another step forward on the road to the internationalization of Florence – not only as an art city but also as a hub of expertise and crafts excellence,» Curia continued. «We are more than certain that this initiative at Macy’s will be a great success and just the beginning of a wider-ranging program for “exporting” many others of Florence’s crafts and traditional products to the U.S.»
Selection of the artisans involved in the initiative started from the marketing targets pointed out by Macy’s and took into account the “Casa delle Eccellenze” project coordinated by PromoFirenze in concert with the trade associations and with Expo 2015, for which a committee made up of members of the trade associations evaluated and selected exhibitor companies on the basis of two fundamental criteria: the artisan identity of the product and its capacity to represent Florentine culture and excellence.
«For the artisans, Macy’s has reserved its Ground Court», added Commissioner Mantovani, «where they will be displaying and selling their products. For a brief period, certainly – but just as certainly a period sufficient for them to make their marks. What’s more, their creations will be worn by the models on occasion of the runway shows scheduled for the Fashion Week, open to young American designers from Philadelphia’s design schools.» The commissioner also stressed how participation by a former Polimoda student, a U.S. citizen selected by the Florentine fashion school, can represent a stimulus to encourage U.S. fashion students to visit Italy – and perhaps even decide to take specialist degrees in Florence.
A photographic exhibition staged at Macy’s Ground Court will be presenting Florence and the boundless panorama of Florentine crafts.