Packed up and headed towards Florence, but before settling down, G2 Textile Factory, located in Prato, Italy, was just on the way. The factory had the essence of a villa with its relaxing and modern prescence along with being greeted by Walter (Agent who keeps maintains relationships with mills and customers), Samantha (Responsible for preparing documents and shopping hangers to be delivered to designers), and Marzo (The owner of the factory who has the last word when it comes to making decisions).
The insight that was given was very interesting and it was flattering to hear how designers interact with textile factories in order to prepare themselves for the initial making of their collection for each season. It was incredibly experiential to see the behind the scenes of the making of yards and yards of fabrics as well as how the team at the factory worked together to in order to contribute to the fashion industry. There is a lot of time and work that are put into every fabric that is made and it is most important how these fabrics then become sewed and stitched into garments that take much thought and creativity.
At G2, 90% of designers choose their own design, pattern, and material. New patterns are created by one person who views fashion shows and taking inspiration from that and making the
designer's vision come to life. G2 is not quite a big production but they supply the U.S., Italy, Canada, Korea, and Japan.
Alexander Wang, Philip Lim, Dolce & Gabana, Armani, Ferragamo, Elie Tahari, and Theory are among the many designers that G2 supplies fabric to. In the picture above, there are pieces of fabric that are specifically made for Fall/Winter which is the most imporant season of all, and as you can see, in the fashion market,
black always sells more.
The fine yarns used to be weaved by the internal looms are imported from places such as Australia, India, and Japan. When making fabric selections, synthetic fibers and materials are being used more than anything compared to organic.
In this picture, the salvage is being drawn from the loom. It is very important for the factory to recycle these extra pieces on the specified date and time that is given. This recycled material is then used as fleece for winter coats, sweaters, and jackets such as The North Face.
As the roads got narrower and the streets seemed to be a littler curvier with many rotaries and intersections, Florence was finally in view. Every street leading towards the Duomo was filled with groups of tourists and little boutiques and stores that attracted many visitors and eager shoppers looking for authentic Italian goods.
