The third edition of the BSTIM textile fair closed in Igualada last week, welcoming 1,400 visitors from around the world. According to organisers, the most represented countries were Russia, England, Sweden, Norway, Holland and Italy, with purchasing managers, designers and distributors from European fashion brands coming to Spain in order to find local suppliers.

The show hosted sixty exhibitors, including knitwear manufacturers and garment producers, who were reportedly satisfied with the event, where they made a number of contacts and potential future business connections, organisers report.

According to exhibitors, the profile of the visitors was of high quality, as they included managers of important Spanish brands with high purchasing capacity, like Inditex, Corte Inglés or Cortefiel. Exhibitors were also left satisfied with a large number of the first-time visitors, which allowed adding new contacts to those made during the previous editions.

Manufacturing in proximity

The textile fair BSTIM, organised by Fira d’Igualada, the textile group Fagepi and the Council of Igualada, is the only exhibition for textile production in Spain. It aims to show the country’s textile production potential and encourage big brands to manufacture here, instead of Asia, organisers explain.

“Among the advantages of manufacturing in proximity are the close contact, the possibility of shorter series, personalized designs, rapidity in delivering the finished garment and avoiding stocks and financial costs. Moreover, the companies also value the possibility of establishing a long-lasting relationship of confidence with the supplier to contribute to the development of the products of the brand,” organisers report.

Related to the idea of proximity, this year BSTIM focused on encouraging sustainable fashion. For this reason, the main hall of the fair had a Showroom organised together with the Association Sustainable Fashion Barcelona, where the focus was on textile companies that take into consideration the social and environmental impacts of their manufacturing processes. 

Next edition

BSTIM grew in its third edition, and as a result, the organisation has decided to hold it biannually, to support that growth. “With this decision the fair adapts itself to the dynamic of the textile market. Only in a year the industrial sector has not enough novelties and the manufacturers do not generate enough capacities or services to present to brands and distributors,” organisers explain.

“With this decision the organisation is convinced that a higher presence of buyers will be reached and also the number of exhibitors will increase because this event will become an unavoidable event in the calendar. The years with no BSTIM salon the fair will organise several activities to help promote the brand BSTIM and its exhibiting companies in the framework of relevant sectorial events.”

www.bstim.cat