Exploring the marriage between fashion and ‘Made in Italy’ and the key role of G.B. Giorgini

The first high fashion show organized in Florence in 1951 represented an important event for the development of the Italian fashion sector, increasing the importance of the fashion industry in international trade. Research in economic business history has identified this period as crucial for the advent of the ‘Made in Italy’ label. The article aims to understand if and how the high fashion shows organized in Florence between 1951 and 1967 influenced the emergence of the Italian fashion industry and the concept of ‘Made in Italy’. Supported by data collected from the historical archive ‘Italian Fashion Archive of Giovanni Battista Giorgini’ and three online archives of digitalized books and newspapers, the analysis sheds light on the perception of the national and international press on the cultural phenomena of Italian fashion and ‘Made in Italy’. Results reveal an increasing trend in the frequency of terms related to the Italian fashion industry coinciding with the years of the Florentine events. The analysis evidences the crucial role of the entrepreneurial activity of Giovanni Battista Giorgini, buyer and organizer of the first Italian high fashion show in Florence, for the emergence of the Italian fashion industry and ‘Made in Italy’.