"Designed in Italy" and "Made in China" are both well known globally, but what about a combination the two?
"It is really perfect," says Laulos Forja, an official with the Association of Stylists in Marche, Italy, an area renowned for its history of world-class shoe design and crafting.
The sentiment is echoed by Zhang Yingwen, general manager with Jinjiang Hengren Import and Export Co Ltd.
Zhang's company has signed a contract with Studio Stilistico Goretti, a member of Forja's association, to introduce Italian shoe designs to Jinjiang Hengren to combine strengths and sharpen their competitive edge in international markets.
Purpura Salvatore, chief designer of Studio Stilistico Goretti, says he appreciates China's shoemaking crafts.
"From raw materials selection and manufacturing technology to a skillful workforce, China is an ideal place to turn my ideas into applications," he says.
Zhang in turn believes participation by Italian designers will add value to his company's products and facilitate training of more local designing talent.
Forja says she is very busy traveling back and forth between China and Italy as cooperative demands between the two sides have soared.
The Association of Marche Stylists is an industrial design association for market research, business promotion and transnational exchanges of member studios. It also serves as a bridge for Italian design institutes to access global markets. The fast-growing market in China has become the hottest destination for Italian designers to cash in.
At the recent Jinjiang International Shoe Exposition held in East China's Fujian Province, the association brought in six leading Italian studios. In addition to Studio Stilistico Goretti, others included Lori Bolzonello, Properzi's Studio, Workshop di Mandozzi Andrea & Co S.a.s and Santmaria Studio.
"Some of them have inked deals with local enterprises, such as Jinjiang Hengren and Yangyang Trading Corporation to provide designing and market-trend consulting services," says Forja.
According to Yu Baiji, deputy member of China Leather Industrial Association's Technology Committee, Italian designers are good at grasping the latest international fashions or actually leading trends, so their designs can upgrade Chinese products for the international fashion market.
"Some of their (Italian designers) ideas, such as specific designs for children's shoes to make them not only comfortable but also favorable for healthy growth, are things our designers deserve to learn," he says.
It is not only in the shoe industry where Italian designers are reaching into China - and their performance has been remarkable, analysts say.
Kebao & Boloni began a kitchen cabinet business in a small private factory in 1991. Together with an Italian company, Kebao established Beijing Kebao & Boloni Kitchen & Bathroom Furniture Co Ltd in 2001 and became No 1 in sales revenue in Beijing.
In 2004, the company invited Italian Lino Codato to be chief designer and began nationwide and global expansion.
It has now grown from a small workshop to an industrial leader in China with a sales network that includes many nations and a subsidiary in Shanghai. Holding companies in Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Nanjing and Hangzhou are now under development.
Though exact statistics are not available, insiders say Italian designers working for domestic companies are popular - and their salaries are much higher than their local peers.
Cai Ming, general manager with Kebao & Boloni, says that in addition to bonuses, the average annual salary for foreign designers in his company is hundreds of thousands of yuan, compared to domestic designer wages in the tens of thousands of yuan.
For their part, Italian designers find that China offers them huge opportunities and many fresh ideas.
"China's long history and fast development inspired my passion, I can do so many things I could not have imagined or have no opportunity to do in Italy," says Salvatore.
Insiders say that Italy's highly developed design market has become somewhat saturated, while the emerging market in China provides many opportunities for energetic Italian designers.
"It's a compulsory partnership," says Forja, adding that Chinese designers are progressing rapidly with Italian designers' participation, which will further promote local growth and lead to sound competition.
(China Daily 05/14/2007 page1)
