Paths of Transformation: Shaping the Future of Italian Fashion

Abstract

This article examines the ongoing transformations within the Italian fashion system through the findings of the national research project ResHaping made in ITAly (RHITA), focusing in particular on the activities of the University of Florence Research Unit in Milestone 3 (M3). It interrogates the contemporary conditions under which Made in Italy can be reproduced and reformulated. Drawing on a critical review of the literature and a qualitative methodological design based on case studies, the research identifies three emerging transformative trajectories: circular systems, phygital scenarios, and informal education. The analysis shows that these trajectories do not operate additively, but rather through a relationship of co-determination: circularity requires informational infrastructures that make materials traceable and regenerable; the phygital dimension stabilizes and mediates such information through digital devices; and informal education enables its operational translation and the transmission of the skills necessary for their practical implementation. Through six case studies selected across production, services, and training, the article highlights the tensions among standardization, material variability, and situated knowledges that characterize contemporary Made in Italy. The contribution advances a systemic reading of the transformation of the Italian fashion sector, interpreting Made in Italy as a dynamic device in which material, information, and learning are continuously negotiated.