School As A Meeting Place For Today’s And Tomorrow’s Supply Chain

For years, education and the fashion industry have spoken different languages. On one side, schools have been tasked with transferring skills and preparing future professionals. On the other, companies have been facing constantly evolving markets, new technologies and growing difficulties in finding qualified personnel. In between lies a gap that has become increasingly evident over the years and that today represents one of the most important challenges for the competitiveness of Made in Italy.

This is where ITSs come in: higher technological institutes funded by the State that provide a fifth-level diploma, equivalent to a three-year university degree, with the aim of training the human capital needed to preserve and advance the artisanal and manufacturing heritage that distinguishes Italy.

«The State recognised the need to support companies in bridging the ever-widening gap between the demand for qualified professionals and the availability of these profiles on the market», explain Maurizio Del Vecchia, president of ITS MITA, and Antonella Vitiello, general director.

At ITS MITA, this mission takes shape through two-year programmes lasting 1,800 hours, more than half of which are carried out in laboratories and 800 of which are dedicated to company experience. A network that today involves around one thousand production companies across Tuscany, Italy and abroad, covering sectors ranging from leather goods to clothing, knitwear and design.

ITS MITA is present with seven locations distributed across the main Tuscan production districts, from Scandicci to Prato, from Empoli to Arezzo, up to Pontedera, Capannori and Siena. This widespread presence allows the school to maintain direct contact with the manufacturing specialisations that characterise each area. The same approach is reflected in the professional fields covered by the institute, ranging from leather goods and footwear to jewellery and knitwear, as well as fashion design, marketing and fashion communication, while also addressing increasingly central topics such as sustainability, innovation and process digitalisation.

Students with a secondary school diploma from any type of educational background can access these programmes, even without previous fashion training, as well as students coming from vocational education and training pathways (IFP), after completing a one-year integration course. Each class, made up of 25 students, follows the same educational path, taking exams at the same time and participating in group workshops and laboratories led by professionals who teach them what their future work will actually look like.

«Here, students are taught by people who perform these activities in real life», explains Vitiello. «Our teaching method is based on learning by doing, with limited classroom teaching except for essential subjects such as labour law. Students are trained to enter production processes and immediately contribute, and this is possible because they have access to laboratories equipped with cutting-edge machinery, the result of a €7 million investment in training facilities».

Innovation is in fact one of the school’s cornerstones: from 3D printers to virtual prototyping, up to artificial intelligence applications in production processes, technology is interpreted as a tool capable of enhancing manufacturing knowledge rather than replacing it. According to president Maurizio Del Vecchia, this also plays a fundamental cultural role. «We need to become more attractive to young people and help them rediscover their passion for these professions. To do so, we must overcome an outdated image of manufacturing work and show the complexity and level of innovation that characterise today’s companies within the supply chain».

Technology is also a further tool for connecting students and companies: businesses have access to all laboratories, as required by ministerial and regional regulations, allowing SMEs to train and upskill their own personnel. At the same time, collaboration with the University of Florence and the permanent presence of researchers within the institute help create an environment where applied research, design and production coexist on a daily basis.

«Our dream is to become not only an educational centre, but a meeting place for the fashion world», says Del Vecchia. At the heart of this vision is one key word: passion. «A passion that translates into the ability to share knowledge, engage students and build a continuous dialogue between school and the supply chain. Because, even before technical skills, it is people who determine the value of an educational project».