Camera Nazionale della Moda Italiana
Camera Nazionale della Moda Italiana has been bound to Italian fashion for fifty years, a period of extreme success for the nation’s industry. Italian fashion’s adventure began in Florence in the early 1950s with the first fashion shows featuring the creations of haute couture designers. These were exclusive events reserved for the most famous Italian and international journalists and for buyers of America’s most famous department stores. Giovanni Battista Giorgini, who was responsible for purchasing Italian products for the finest American clients, intuited North America’s interest for Italian style and creativity. In 1953, Italian fashions debuted in the Sala Bianca at Palazzo Pitti, an event that sanctioned and marked Italian fashion’s evolution from an artisanal to an industrial reality. During this period, relationships between tailors and industrial wool and cotton spinners and silk weavers began to develop, giving rise to prêt-à-porter (ready-to-wear) fashion, which was to become Italy’s triumph. Tailors’ skills became an economic force and a crucial source of wealth for the nation. Milan, Rome and Florence became the capitals of Italian fashion.
Founded in 1958, Camera Nazionale della Moda Italiana is a non-profit association with head offices in Milan, fashion capital of the world. It represents 160 Italian fashion companies operating in haute couture, prêt-à-porter, quality tailoring, sportswear, furriers, cosmetics, fabrics/fashion, accessories, leather goods, shoes, services and distribution. It coordinates, safeguards and promotes the identity and excellence of Italian fashion and it serves as reference point for initiatives aimed to raising awareness, spreading and valorising fashion in Italy and abroad.
On 3 February 2003 the Prefecture of Milan granted the Camera Nazionale della Moda Italiana legal status and in 2003 it attained UNI EN ISO 9001:2000 certification. In 2004, the Region of Lombardy also conceded the organisation the right to operate as a training institution. Camera Nazionale della Moda Italiana plays an important role in international fashion events through sealed alliances with Paris, London and New York. It is a source of inspiration for international fashion weeks hosted in San Paolo, Tokyo and Shanghai.