Fast track: Professional Clothing Industry Association Worldwide (PCIAW)—summit, exhibition and award winners, Porto 2023

Fast track: Professional Clothing Industry Association Worldwide (PCIAW)—summit, exhibition and award winners, Porto 2023

The 2023 edition of the annual PCIAW Summit, Exhibition & Awards event—hosted by the Professional Clothing Industry Association Worldwide (PCIAW) in Porto, Portugal—demonstrated the growing significance of Portugal as a “near-shore” manufacturing partner to the textile and clothing industries in other European countries.

The Portuguese textile industry has made a name for itself in the production of high quality garments for a broad variety of global brands in the fashion, sportswear and workwear sectors but it is eager to form new partnerships and further demonstrate its capabilities and reliability.

At the 2023 PCIAW Summit, Exhibition & Awards event, a spotlight was shone on some of the largest garment and textile manufacturers in the north-west corner of Portugal, which represents the largest single textile manufacturing region in Europe.

Calvelex, based in Lousada, Portugal, produces around 1 mn garments a year with a focus on premium women’s wear and uniforms. It routinely invests in state-of-the-art technology, employee training and strategic alliances with a view to maintaining its competitiveness in the ever-changing global textiles market.

Lameirinho, based in Guimarães, Portugal, produces around 5 mn textile products a year with a focus on bed linen and table linen. It invests heavily in research and development (R&D) and design to enable it to continue to strengthen its well established position in Portugal and in international markets.

MGC, also based in Guimarães, Portugal, produces around 20 mn metres of dyed and white fabric a year with a focus on fabrics for protective clothing and fashion. Also, it specialises in finishes which offer flame retardancy, insect repellency and soil repellency.

As well as promoting the Portuguese textile industry, the 2023 PCIAW Summit, Exhibition & Awards event drew attention to the challenges facing the textile industry as a whole. During a series of talks, keynote presentations and round-table discussions hosted by the organisers of the event, several urgent issues were debated—including: the role of digitalisation in the professional clothing industry; diversity and inclusivity in clothing design; the promotion of skills and training in the textile sector and the textile services sector; and the implications of forthcoming sustainability and design regulation in the EU. The talks made clear that sustainability and circularity no longer represent a fad but are key to survival for businesses operating in the textile and clothing industry.

On the final day of the 2023 PCIAW Summit, Exhibition & Awards event, the organisers hosted the 2023 PCIAW Awards ceremony, which recognised key innovations in the professional clothing industry.