Arrival
Not far from Porto, we receive a warm welcome from our coat production partner. Miguel is the second generation to run the family business, which his father founded in 1986, together with his mother and sister. Today, 75 employees work in the company.
We really appreciate our collaboration. Miguel specializes in smaller quantities and works with well-known fashion brands. The overall atmosphere in the company is positive and family-like.
Our family business with a passion for clothing
On average, the employees have been working here for thirty years. They come from the area and are very attached to the family and the company. We are particularly pleased when we see a pair of brothers who are already retired coming by to steam some coats and chat with former colleagues.
On this occasion, Paula, who shows us around, reports that the production facility also suffered from a shortage of staff at times. But cooperation with a capable agent has led to several experienced employees from Ukraine and one employee from Bangladesh enriching the company.
We are very happy about the positivity and tangible energy with which the fashion craft is celebrated in this company. It is not for nothing that we secretly call our partner: our family business with a passion for ready-to-wear.
Visit to the second production facility
We also meet Ricardo in the vicinity of the city of Porto. Ricardo runs the family business, which celebrated its 10th anniversary in 2022.
We still remember our last visit well – and Ricardo’s mother, a woman who still checks the finished parts herself, is the first in the company in the morning and the last in the evening.
We have been working together since 2015 and it is a great pleasure to see them again for the first time after the pandemic. And Goreti is back too, a mother of two children, fully employed and incredibly charismatic.
An inspiring tour
As with our last visit, we are impressed by the brightness, the atmosphere, the machinery, the brand portfolio and, of course, the high-quality clothing that is produced in the 150-strong company.
During our tour of the GOTS-certified company, we came up with many new ideas for our high-end clothing, but the topic of “leftovers” – the use of leftover rolls of fabric to create fashionable one-off pieces – also caught our attention.
