High Quality, Sustainability and Innovation at Modtissimo

Visiting Porto is always a pleasure. The beauty of the city, the friendliness of its people, its sea and the untiring and serene sunshine make any business trip to Porto a pleasure to be taken with a smile. Porto's textile industry is also becoming increasingly very interesting and innovative. Most of the brands have specialised in the creation of recycled or upcycled collections. Cork is also one of the most promising materials. "Almost all companies in Portugal are reducing water consumption, reducing waste, reducing energy. They are turning waste in new raw materials. Also, many chemical companies are using natural dyes and eco-friendly finishes” - says Ana Paula Dinis, Executive Director at ATP, Association Textile & Clothing in Portugal. 

We are with her at Modtissimo, the most important fashion and textile fair in the country. She explains how the textile sector is evolving in the country. "We had a very good decade between 2009-2019, with all indicators growing. In 2020, with the pandemic, all indicators went down. In 2021 we experienced again records in exports and turnovers. In 2022, the first semester was very good, it was very dynamic. But due to the war and all its consequences –mainly the energy, gas and electricity crisis–, the Portuguese textile sector started to live a very difficult period from April-May 2022. We need a lot of gas for the dyeing and finishing processes" - she declares.

Talking about sustainability, she assures ATP is investing a lot in promoting the Portuguese textile and clothing industry as "the sustainable one". Asked about the challenges of fashion in this regard, she answers: “For us, the biggest challenge is how are we going to treat all the clothes wasted and put them again in the process”. 

More than 200 exhibitors participated in Modtissimo, coming from fabrics and accessories, clothing for adults and children, and services. Hall 5 also featured the iTechStyle Showcase forum, developed by CITEVE, and the Fabrics Forum, organized by Associação Selectiva Moda.

TALKING WITH ECO-CONSCIOUS FASHION DESIGNERS ABOUT MODTISSIMO

One of the most satisfied brands on stage was Marita Moreno. “We had stores interested in our products, European websites interested in having our brand on their platforms and we consider the fair to be an excellent space to show our sustainable products and collections” - declared to Luxiders the owner of the brand. The collection presents a return to traditional and sustainable Portuguese materials such as cork, burel (100% wool from Serra da Estrela sheep, produced in an artisanal production unit with 3 generations of history), straw (made by Portuguese artisans and applied in vegan sneakers) and the presentation of innovative materials such as recycled and organic denim dyed and finished in Portugal, Alfarroba-Tex (Bio material 100% carob created and produced in Portugal by a Portuguese designer) and Pacoba-Tex (Bio 100% banana material created and produced in Portugal by a Portuguese designer), FSC certified paper, Desserto (material made from cactus), rubber soles and biodegradable components.

We are passionate about the love of detail, which is why we are interested in the D-Raíz brand. The ethical values of the collection are related to circularity and eco-design, paying special attention to the entire life-cycle of production, use and end of life of the products, seeking the minimum environmental impact at each stage and facilitating reuse or recycling without compromising functionality or quality. "I look for materials for my products that are composed of a single fibre, virgin, organic or recovered, from dead stocks from nearby factories or innovative. I design timeless pieces that are not subject to the dictates of fashion trends" - says Felicidad Pérez, the designer. Her feedback about the fair was: "I had several contacts from people who have marketplaces or online shops for sustainable products and were looking for brands to add to their catalogue. Specifically, I had two contacts, both from Austria."

The Captain is other brand we discovered there. They prioritize eco-friendly and sustainable products to minimize their impact in the environment. “Besides, our range of products - organic cotton socks and vegan sneakers made with apples, we are proud to introduce a new addition to our product line – a wallet made with apples” - says Tiago Monteiro. Asked about the fair, he declares: “We received a positive feedback from international customers who were particularly interested in sustainable products such as socks and sneakers. The high number of visitors suggests that there is a growing awareness and demand for sustainable products, which is a positive news for the industry. We were also impressed by the range and quality of the sustainable products on display, which indicates that more and more companies are taking sustainability seriously and incorporating it into their business practices. Overall, it was a valuable experience and we look forward for the next edition. 5 stars for Modtissimo”. 

We felt in love with the kidswear brand Möm(e), developed under a conscious production. They only produce according to market demand to ensure that they don't surcharge the planet with clothing that will not be used. Also, they make sure that all fabrics and accessories are certified in order to guarantee a more conscious production. On another side, they have a very straightforward relationship with theirs suppliers, ensuring good and fair working conditions for their employees, they say. We loved the capsule collection of handmade pieces made fairly by Portuguese artisans near Oporto. “In general, the show was full of visitors from other countries (France, Spain, Belgium, Netherlands, Brazil, Uk...). We are quite satisfied with our participation. Besides the brand Möm(e), our company also offers a textile consultancy service for other brands, so Modtissimo allows us to present this service. Most of the visitors we had were foreign brands that intend to produce in Portugal and contacted us for this consultancy service” - says Inês Camaño, owner of the brand.

The strambótica brand was participating in Modtissimo for the first time. “Very different types of customers have been interested in our brand: journalists from fashion magazines, online commerce platforms, physical shops in Portugal with certain characteristics of exclusive products, physical shops with sustainable products, design students, and anonymous people who liked the designs and materials we use in our products (...) Modtissimo fair is a benchmark for organisation and good work. The talks, the trends forum, the commercial relationships that can be made and, above all, the sensitivity for ecological textiles...; Modtissimo has been a great discovery" - Concha points out. strambótica is a fashion brand committed to creating products with natural raw materials, recycled paper, organic cotton, and uses prints with ecological dyes.

It was also the first time for Diana Pais, founder for the kids wear brand R3ADY TO PLAY. “The main focus is the industry side so, there are very few buyers visiting. I have made contacts with an online retailer looking for brands to sell on their website. I was also visited by other kids wear brands that wanted some feedback on the Portuguese textile industry and by fashion students”. R3ADY TO PLAY presented a denim collection for kids. Each of the R3ADY TO PLAY pieces is designed to grow with the child, with an elasticated waist, longer arms or legs that can be worn up and down as your children grow” - explains Diana Pais to Luxiders Magazine.

“I was visited by private labels from Spain, German and Portugal. Was a good fair” - says Rita, from Cross Lights, a brand of hand woven textile products, produced on manual loom, with low use of electricity. The threads come from Italy fabrics that eliminate co2 emissions. “I use manly Bio wool and Alpaca and I recycle all threads catalogues and waste of the pieces made”- add her.