A new frontier and a win-win solution from a business and a humanitarian standpoint: on October 18, 2018 Calzedonia’s first plant in Africa will officially open its doors

The new production facility – ITACA TEXTILE PLC – is located in Ethiopia, in Mekelle, the capital city of the Tigray Region: the favourable customs regime, the ever-increasing availability of raw materials, and the abundance of labour are just a few of the factors that turn the Italian Group’s investment into a strategic and stimulating challenge. ITACA TEXTILE PLC currently has 1,000 employees, but this number is expected to reach 1,500 by mid-2019; the company will provide its workers with free meals and transportation. But that’s not all: there are several humanitarian initiatives aimed at ensuring that the factory grows together with the local people, such as building a well for the town in front of the manufacturing plant and providing its employees with access to an external health facility, also comprising a medical laboratory, as well as with 10 liters of drinking water per person per week. It is a huge investment for the fashion Group from Verona (the total cost of the investment – in terms of facilities and machinery – amounts to approximately 22 million euros), as well as a great social commitment to a country that is currently undergoing progressive modernization. The Calzedonia Group has been a pioneer in the field, thanks to the constant commitment shown and the great support provided to the SAN ZENO FOUNDATION (set up in 1999 by Sandro Veronesi), which has been carrying out humanitarian projects for several years now. The ITACA TEXTILE PLC project got its start in 2016, when the company began selecting its first personnel, who, over time, have been instructed and trained in all the different stages of the production process. Many of them now hold key positions, such as Production Line Leader and Head of Department. The new facility – where not just CALZEDONIA, but also TEZENIS and INTIMISSIMI products will be manufactured – will cover the entire production cycle: from material quality control to fabric cutting up to the final stages of ironing and packaging. Production will mainly focus on knitwear, nightwear and leggings. Over the past few months, ITACA has shown remarkable results, from day 1, both in terms of volumes and of product quality; in light of these encouraging results, expanding the scope of the project is now a concrete option, also thanks to an increasingly favourable social environment. With approximately 16,500 square meters of indoor space and additional 2,000 square meters of external support facilities, ITACA’s numbers are just as good as any large company’s figures. It is an outpost in the Horn of Africa for a company that is currently expanding its horizons and strengthening its presence worldwide.

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