PORTUGUESE REVOLUTION FROM YARN TO APPAREL

Accustomed to work with leading international brands, Portuguese companies return to the iconic Paris’ trade fair to dictate the trends of the upcoming seasons. At Expofil, Tearfil, part of the group António de Almeida & Filhos, proposes the yarns from which are going to be created woven and knitted fabrics for spring-summer 2015, guided by a wide palette of colours, structures and compositions.  

At Première Vision, among exhibitors of woven and knitted fabrics, Portugal has a representation of 18 companies – A. Sampaio & Filhos, Albano Morgado, Adalberto Estampados, Arco Têxteis, Fitecom, Gierlings Velpor, ITS/Somelos Tecidos, Lemar, Living Colours, LMA, Lurdes Sampaio, Paulo de Oliveira, Penteadora, Riopele, Tessimax, Teviz, TMG e Troficolor – with collections full of originality for autumn-winter 2014/2015.

It’s the case of Penteadora, a company of the group Paulo De Oliveira, Europe’s largest in the wool industry and that also includes the eponymous company and Tessimax, which reinforces its DNA of innovation's pioneer with the development of the first fabric with Kermel “made in Portugal”, officially introduced in the Parisian fair and that has France as one of its target markets. «With the emergence of a domestic producer, the export potential of the Portuguese companies is significantly opposed to the import trend existing until now, with all the advantages to our trade balance resulting from there», considers sales manager António Teixeira.

In a cold season, the luxury velvets from Gierlings Velpor cannot be missed. «The major highlight is on the offer of velvets and synthetic skins digitally printed – a unique process in Europe. There’s also an important bet in jacquard velvets with a vast graphics' portfolio», unveils João Teixeira Duarte, commercial director of the company belonging to Amorim Group.

At Teviz, on its side, the collection for next year’s cold season is based mainly «in fabrics for outerwear for women, with different raw materials, structures and finishing. Among the new proposals are enhanced fabrics with elastane for blouses and jacquard fabrics, the result of the renovation of our machinery park with 70 new state of the art looms, allowing therefore more complex fabrics », explains Paulo Loureiro, who in the masculine offer acclaims the Portuguese flannel, «our bestseller nowadays» and indigo fabrics. New compositions, as for instance polyester/rayon/wool, acrylic/modal/linen and 100% cupro are also part of Teviz’s novelties for autumn-winter 2014/2015, as well as, «in the area of fabric ennoblement, a strong bet in vegetal dyeing for a “stained” look in all the piece», adds the commercial director.

In knit fabrics, A. Sampaio & Filhos innovates in the products directed to fashion and sports segments, as well as in environmental sustainable products, in its range “Pure Life”.«Felted wools, fantasy terry quite thick and blends with noble fibres» constitute the main highlights in the fashion area», says administrator João Mendes, as well as «knits with windproof and water repellent membranes or sports knits with wool blends», he adds.

Wools are, in fact, the star of autumn-winter 2014/2015, with the collection of Fitecom fulfilling the comfort and protection demands that the season requires. «Our offer is punctuated by 100% wool fabrics for jackets, with new qualities of wool with elastane. The small patterns, namely chequered with several tones of blues and reds, have the leading role», announces the commercial director, Luís Filipe. 

In the area dedicated to knitwear made of flat knits – Knitwear Solutions – Portuguese know-how is illustrated by the proposals of A. Ferreira & Filhos, Carjor and Orfama. «In this edition we are going to give special attention to the quality of raw materials and manufacture. We are in the knitting business for baby and children for over 45 years, hence we completely dominate all the industrial process. We are going to concentrate our efforts in the presentation of special yarns and knitting stitches, particularly yarns with natural fibres' blends in complex knitting structures», states Honorato de Sousa, commercial manager of Carjor, which is also certified by Oeko-Tex.

Orfama, which is for the first time at Knitwear Solutions, bets, on its side, on a collection «with renewed jacquards with noble raw materials, such as blends with wool/baby alpaca, wool/cashmere, wool/silk, as well as wool/bamboo, wool/cupro, wool/cotton and wool/lurex», unveils sales area manager, António Cunha.

Still in clothing manufacture, but integrated in the fashion manufacturing trade fair Zoom by Fatex, A. J. Gonçalves, Barbosa & Carneiro/Collove, Inarbel, Miguesana/JVP, Raith Têxteis and Squarcione show the quality of the clothing made in Portugal. «To Inarbel this trade fair is very important, not only to consolidate the French market, but also to establish new contacts in other markets», points out José Armindo Ferraz, administrator of the company that produces knitwear, with capacity for different qualities and yarn weights. 

On its side, Raith Têxteis, which proposes «baby and children products with certified materials and 100% ecologic», intends with another presence in the trade fair «to increase the portfolio of major brands as clients, since our production is 90% for private label», declares company’s administrator, Joaquim Rodrigues.

These Portuguese companies are at Première Vision Pluriel with the support of Associação Selectiva Moda, under the project From Portugal, which is financed by European funds (Qren). This project includes more than 60 international actions planned for 2013, which cover the entire textile and fashion chain, from yarns to fabrics, apparel, technical textiles, home textiles and decoration, divided by four continents: Europe, Asia, Africa and America.