OSMO-HTF, Arzignano-based industrial group, remains an international benchmark on sustainability. Will be a main figure of the EuroCongress scheduled at the Fiera di Vicenza
OSMO-HTF continues its growth while reinforcing its leadership in environmental sustainability. The Arzignano-based group, which specializes in the production and sale of technical chemicals and dyes for the tanning industry, in just a few years has been able to establish its own dimension both in Italy, in the leather districts, but growing strongly also abroad.
The Venetian reality, which identifies itself with the slogan WE ARE OSMO, is synonymous with passion, technology, synergy and respect for the environment, four ingredients of a recipe that have led it to position itself on the market as a point of reference in the tanning industry. OSMO-HTF encompasses a team that specializes in the development of procedures intended for the processing of leather in the wet phase, a technical service that aims to solve not only the performance issues of an article but, above all, raise awareness and channel companies towards production processes with a reduced environmental impact. In an industrial sector whose origins go back centuries, the new renewed ecological awareness is changing little by little the way leather is processed, and OSMO-HTF wants to be an integral part of this change.
At the 2022 edition of Prossima Pelle, held in Santa Croce sull’Arno, we met the four owners of OSMO-HTF at their stand – Andrea Piazza, Ludovico Massignan, Fabrizio Nicoletti and Paolo Armelli – we spoke about the new 2022 products launched on the market and the future developments of the company, both from the industrial point of view and under the environmental aspect.
“We have set up an elegant and attractive stand,” the four owners explained, “even from the point of view of colours, emphasizing one of the ‘aces up our sleeve’; COSMOWHITE, the metal- and aldehyde-free as well as chrome-free “biodegradable leather” system first presented in 2016, which was the first step on our path toward an eco-sustainable future. Our path is to prioritize the most eco-friendly part of the leather, thus comprising the grain and crusts. Our products, also used to produce sneakers, are all tested, largely reflecting the current regulations. For this edition, we have brought an innovation that is a water-based matte varnish, to which we add new technologies with the double-printing effect, an item we have named Amsterdam. Another great innovation that characterizes us is a classic “osmotic nappa,” which of course references our brand.”
With the new products introduced do you feel you have completed the range, at least in terms of sustainability?
“We never stop, we have recently prepared a new and elegant brochure including a range of products with a high percentage of bio-derived substance. Just to ensure maximum transparency for each product the percentage is indicated, for example if you go through the skins on display you can read in the label 88 percent, 78 percent and even 100 percent bio-derived. This is an interesting and winning aspect because it is a set of specific products to meet market demands, with the guarantee, however, of excellent quality. The values used result regularly tracked: for example, with regard to re-tanning the total percentage of the product used is indicated: the average value of the most virtuous companies is around 50 percent, we in many cases reach 80 percent. In addition, there is also the quality aspect: the performance of our products is equal or superior to chrome items, despite the high bio-derivative content.”
In the ‘green’ sector, regulations from January 1, 2022 have become even more stringent….
“We have always managed to stay ahead of the times, in particular our products boast a lower content of bisphenol than the allowed limit, while in terms of the other parameters what little was missing we have adjusted. Our advantage is that we started years ago with this environmental mission, so we have been able to move forward without having to race against time. Among companies in the industry pursuing the “metal-free” strategy, we are in a favoured and leading position. Also crucial is the fact that we boast a worldwide process patent, which therefore cannot be copied, concerning COSMOWHITE.”
Such performances are increasingly demanded by the high-fashion market and by designer labels …
“We have been ready for it. Sustainable products, with their specific specifications, are increasingly required on the market, in any case they represent the future. Certainly in the intentions of the legislators it is also a way to make selections and create competition, through which the best will eventually emerge. To paraphrase, let’s say that they “close some roads” to make sure that only the most capable and the rule-abiding arrive at their destination.”
After the 2020-2021 two-year period marked by Covid, which ensured that all companies increased the time spent on research and development, how did the tanning market come out and what is the OSMO-HTF balance sheet in the first half of this year?
“The year 2021 was very positive, at least for us, also due to the fact that due to the spring lockdown the previous year had been characterized by less than exciting numbers, after all, the whole world economy had come to a stop. The year 2022 had started well, but then it was hurt by the situation related to raw material costs that literally skyrocketed, in some cases disproportionately, so an overall slowdown was preferable and to be expected. The decline in the automotive sector did not affect us so negatively, by having a full range of items, we are able to compensate between higher and lower demands.”
How do you assess the situation in international markets?
“We are growing abroad, partly because we start from an export share of 25 percent of sales, so we have considerable margins for growth, although we want to proceed gradually. Certainly one of the most interesting continents remains the East, not only China, but also individual countries in those areas. Signs of recovery are also coming from South America, as well as Mexico, which is no longer an emerging market, as it is already heavily saturated. In the fairly near future an important development could concern the North African countries facing the Mediterranean, but Africa in general, not only in the tanning sector but in all others, probably has greater potential for development than India, for example. In the African continent, what we have already seen with China could come true, that is, from being an area in which to produce at low cost for potential buyers of made-in-Italy products.”
What will be the main events in which you will participate in the second half of 2022?
“From September 18 to 20, we will be featured at the EuroCongress scheduled at the Fiera di Vicenza. This is an international event, which is being hosted in Italy after several years, during which innovative works will be presented from the stage. One of them, which we cannot reveal, bears the signature of the OSMO-HTF brand, this is a very important opportunity in the ambit of a very prestigious and selected showcase.”
On the left: Fabrizio Nicoletti, Andrea Piazza, Giampaolo Arnelli e Ludovico Massignan
The industrial group of Arzignano (Vicenza province) OSMO-HTF has launched the new marketing campaign to defend the tanning sector: it has always been an international reference point for environmental sustainability.
“Vivo Nella Pelle” (“I live in leather”) is the new innovative marketing campaign through which OSMO-HTF intends to enhance the tanning sector. The area where the main office is located, hosts one of the most important districts in the world for leather processing. The two companies, OSMO founded in 2006 and HTF in 2012, together have become a point of reference in Italy and in the world with regards to environmental sustainability, a challenge that began in the first decade of the 2000s, when the “green” choices started. The Vicenza-based group has been able, very often, to beat competitors at the challenges of the market: this is the case of biodegradable products, whose first studies and trials date back to several years ago and were launched on the market shortly after.