Strong innovation and greater internationalization measures in Italy, without compromising on the excellence of 'Made In Italy' manufacturing excellence, has put the Italian textiles market back on track in 2014. As Italy taps into the US markets, textile sales growth continues to rise in 2015. The Italian textile industry is on the comeback, with the sector showing clear signs of recovery in the past twelve months. According to economic experts, strong innovation and greater internationalization measures, without compromising on the excellence of Made In Italy manufacturing, has put the Italian textiles market back on track. Italian fabrics sales rose 3.8% last year, with an overall turnover exceeding 8bn euros – breaking a threshold that hasn’t been reached since 2011, outlined a report by Italian association of textile and apparel manufacturers Sistema Moda Italia (SMI). Exports out of Italy grew by 3.3% to 4.4bn euros, while domestic demand rose by 4.4% following years of flat or decreasing growth, revealed data presented during the 20th annual Milano Unica textile trade fair in February. Overall, textile industry sales were up 3.3% to 52.4bn euros, and exports climbed 3.9 % to 28.5bn euros. According to SMI, sell-out figures in Italy dropped 3%, while “apparent spending”, which refers to business-to-business spending, rose 2.5%. "After six long years of crisis, there are now several positive signs that make us look at the future with less concern," SMI director-general Giancarlo Di Natale told Xinhua in a recent interview. Textile companies, who remained focused on innovation, were a key push in the recovery, as were those who were intent on creating original products. New shapes, colors and fabrics are being crafted to compete on the global platform. "Innovation has been crucial even for an industry like ours, which is used to reinventing itself every six months. Many manufacturers have not cut themselves off in the crisis, but invested in research and greater internationalization. This strategy is now bearing fruits," said Di Natale. In 2012, SMI estimated that the number of employees had dropped from 548,000 in 2009, to 423,000 and the number of companies had fallen from some 74,000 (clothing and textile combined) to just a little over 50,000. Meanwhile, production had drop by 26% in four years, according to Italian Statistics Institute. Italy’s capacity to adopt innovative practice has been a group effort, led by streamline interactions within the whole supply chain: the producers of high-quality fabrics; textile printers; quality tailors; and the on-the-ball suppliers connecting materials to the right people for the right price. Although the growth witnessed in 2014 is likely to stabilize over the next comparative months, the recovery remains buoyant. According to SMI, in the first half of 2015, textile and fashion sales are expected to grow 2.8%: the textile industry is predicted to gain 2.5% and fashion is expected to grow 2.9%. In the first six months of the year, exports are forecast to grow 3.3%, The United States is a key market for Italy. The SMI report confirmed fabric exports to the North America rose by 10% in 2014, meaning Italy must jump upon the US. Florence-based trade fair, Pitti Uomo (run by Pitti Immagine) confirmed that the menswear promoter hopes to set-up a Made In Italy allegiance with certain US department stores. "Next year we will be announcing a new collaboration with American department store Saks, and we hope to multiply this type of collaboration with other chains," Gaetano Marzotto, President of Pitti Immagine, told reporters. Pitti’s push for Italian-made follows the announcement made by Italian Deputy Minister of Economic Development, Carlo Calendo, who revealed in August 2014 that his government would implement measurable objectives to promote Italian business globally and attract greater foreign investment into Italy. "We will launch the largest plan ever adopted in this country to promote Made in Italy. It includes clear and measurable objectives: 50 billion euros in exports by 2016, 20,000 additional exporting companies, 20 billion more in foreign direct investment per year in Italy," Calenda told reporters, at a press conference. “For the first time in our history, this will put us on an equal footing with other European countries."