If we approach the question of haute couture, we necessarily think of the great Italian fashion designers, such as Prada, Giorgio Armani, Valentino, Gucci, Dolce & Gabbana, or Versace, to name a few.
Their world of couture is recognized, but how long have Italians been printing on fabric?
It is difficult to obtain the exact information to answer this question. However, an exhaustive search allowing to partially answer it was carried out.
Without having identified an exact date, we know that fabric printing existed in Europe as early as the 17th century with frame printing, or screen printing. Then, with modern times, around 1990, sublimation printing on fabric appeared with the first machines. The very invention of sublimation would have occurred in 1957, by the engineer Noël de Plasse, who experimented with the sublimation of certain dyes (transition from the solid state to the gaseous state) and invented transfer printing. The image to be reproduced is printed on a paper support, then applied to the textile and heat-fixed.
Searching online for the main fabric printing companies in Italy identifies the following.
First of all, it turns out about naming the company Seriprint Bernareggio. The company prints both digitally and screen-printed. The production capacity is large. The company not only offers the fabric printing service, but also the manufacture of finished garments.
Official Seriprint website: http://www.seriprintsrl.it/en/case-history/
In second place we find the company Friulprint, founded in 1971, in Tarcento, Italy. This company seems to focus on manufacturing printing only. It offers a multitude of different patterns with fabrics varying in thickness, texture and density.
Official Friulprint website: https://www.friulprint.it/
In continuity with the above, we find the company Seride Srl, which currently operates only with the frame printing mode, therefore in screen printing. Its entire production plan is organized for this type of printing. His techniques are very specialized and manufacturing. The production is impressive and of high quality.
Official Seride website: https://www.seride.it/stampa-su-tessuti-serico/
Then there is the important Ratti Group, a leader in the manufacture of fabrics and distribution to major fashion designers all over the world, which has existed since 1945 in Italy. The company was created by Antonio Ratti in Como, with the mission of creating and selling silk fabrics and accessories. Today, the company has offices in New York and China. It prints its fabrics both with the frame printing mode, but also in digital printing by sublimation on fabric.
Official Ratti website: https://www.ratti.it/en/history/
We also identified the company Fashion Digitale, Euroservice Srl, as well as several others. Only the most important companies have been mentioned above.
Apart from the companies specializing in fabric printing, we should not forget to mention the reference in terms of certification and research on the subject of fabric in Italy: Il Centro Tessile Serico Sosteribile. The Center aims to be the point of reference for textile companies and all players in the supply chain.
Centro Tessile Serico Sosteribile official website: https://www.textilecomo.com/en/About/vision-and-mission