territory are the strengths of ICF. The Lombard Group has strengthened its position in the footwear sector and beyond by vertically integrating with Tessitura Langè
“We closed 2023 with a turnover of around 80 million euro compared to 88 million the previous year,” began Guido Cami, president and CEO of Industrie Chimiche Forestali, at the latest edition of Lineapelle. “A satisfactory result if one considers the unfavorable economic developments impacting, amongst others, our sector. Two main factors certainly played in our favor. Firstly, the ability of the Group to diversify by operating not only in the footwear and leather goods sectors, but also in the automotive, furniture, and flexible food packaging sectors, to name but a few. Secondly, the reduction – due to the global economic slowdown – considering energy and raw materials, in contrast to the soaring estimates based on the experience of 2022. Not to mention that the photovoltaic system started up in 2022 allowed us to self-produce about one third of our energy needs in 2023. Everything considered, therefore, even in light of a reduction in turnover, from the point of view of final profitability and cash generation 2023 was not so bad.”
Among the extraordinary activities of ICF, a leading international operator in the design, production and marketing of high-tech adhesives and fabrics, is the acquisition of Tessitura Langè, a historical company founded in 1947 in Robecchetto con Induno: “On April 3, 2023,” continues Guido Cami, “we acquired the company branch, already our supplier of brushed cotton, relating to the business of finishing and ennobling fabrics and trading in yarns and textile products in general, taking over machines, plants, equipment, hiring all 25 employees and renting the premises of the 23,000 square meter plant. The absolutely sustainable decision not to relocate the company from its original premises, as in the case of Morel in 2021, was made on the basis of its strategic positioning. As a matter of fact, the wastewater from the company flows, through a common collector created by a consortium of tanners and dyers from the 1970s, to Ecologica Naviglio, a leading company in the field of treatment and purification of industrial wastewater and leftovers.
We set up and took care of all the overhaul and fine-tuning activities (organization, remediation with suppliers and clients, industrial and operational procedures, maintenance/planting, IT roll out, authorizations, raw material procurement, etc.), pouring into this operation, which we are reasonably happy with, a large part of the cash generated by the 2023 Forestali business. We produce 50% brushed or finished cottons and the other half is colored fabrics for the production of cotton bags for luxury accessories (shoes, bags, glasses, belts). The extraordinary result of this solid and sharing relationship is a short supply chain, traced, entirely Made in Italy and enhanced by the use of ethically sourced cottons (BCI), made with raw materials that are both organic certified by GOTS and recycled with GRS certification, as well as by the use in the production processes of chemical substances that comply with the REACH protocol and the SVHC (Substances of Very High Concern) list.”
With 2023 over, there is a strong concern about the development of 2024. Rising inflation without an automatic adjustment of wages generates an economic slowdown everywhere in the world. So, what are the predictions? “As far as the ICF Group is concerned, we are carrying on our investment plan, increasing production capacity, working on safety and sustainability, which is more and more a ‘must have’. We have already taken steps to comply with the new European CSRD (Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive), which concerns corporate sustainability reporting, to which all large companies and listed SMEs will have to comply, and which they are called upon to give an indication of their values and vision of their relationship with society and the environment. “
New products by ICF, Morel and Tessitura Langè showcased at Lineapelle
Guido Cami (first from left), President and CEO of Industrie Chimiche Forestali, with clients and staff at the latest edition of Lineapelle