NUMBER 10 • DECEMBER 2016

SISLEY'SMARKSisley and artist Marta Biasi together for a series of events dedicated to the customization of denim. The brand also left its mark on the closing event of Rome's Arts and Metropolitan Cultures Festival.

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BENETTON’S FIRST TIMEThe first capsule collection, born from the collaboration with one of the high fliers in contemporary fashion, Stella Jean, is in stores and online since December 1.It's a style made up of colors, irony and multiculturality.

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DANCING THEIR WAY

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Two dancers, mother and daughter, protagonists of the new campaign by Fabrica for Benetton in support of the Orange Days, the UN days against violence against women.

THE ETERNAL CITY IS THE FOCUS OF AN AMBITIOUS COMMERCIAL EXPANSION PLAN STARTED BY BENETTON.

OPENINGS

TO ROMEWITH LOVE

STORE

GOLDMEDAL

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In the final stretch, our Elena Staleva, of the Milan Corso Vittorio Emanuele II store, is voted "the most loved sales assistant in Lombardy".

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I t was a cold night in 1959 when a group of fascinated onlookers crowded the edges of Trevi Square to watch Junoesque Anita Ekberg

dance in the water of the famous Roman fountain. That night, Federico Fellini was filming the most famous scene of his masterpiece, La Dolce Vita, which was released in theaters the following year to resounding success, in little time becoming a worldwide manifesto of Italian spirit. Almost sixty years later, the iconic

power of that scene remains, as evidenced by the millions of tourists who annually flock to visit the Eternal City. How could Benetton imagine a more picturesque location for its new On Canvas store?

A store with a wondrous viewThe store that opened November 24 is directly in front of the Trevi Fountain: 600 square meters on three floors of a prestigious palace in late Baroque style, as befits the location. Inside, space is dedicated to the Women's, Men's and Children's collections, with the latter on the upper floor: with its high ceilings and the diffused light coming in from the windows, it offers a breathtaking panorama, Rome's most beautiful view of the famous monument. The entire store has the characteristic footprint of the On Canvas format which, centered around the loom, organizes a real shopping experience that is new and always different.

The capital of worldlinessFor such a prestigious location, only

The new On Canvas store overlooking the famous Trevi Fountain is only the most recent part of a broader strategy in the Eternal City

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ALL ROADS LEAD TO BENETTON

the most ambitious of launch events would do. And judging by the media coverage it generated, nobody can refute that the event was in fact a huge success. The inauguration party on Thursday, November 24 was attended by about 200 guests, including VIPs and influencers. Among the activities carried out in the store - in addition to the "classic" dj-set, cocktails and finger food - the Share & Print service was particularly successful, allowing customers to

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On Foggia's Corso Vittorio Emanuele, the city's main street - or "the passeggio" as the locals call it - the olive trees are green again, thanks to the reopening of Benetton's megastore, whose

outer façade features original balconies where olive trees grow. The two floors that opened to the public on November 30 host pretty much the entire universe of the Group's brands: Benetton Women and Men, 012, Undercolors, Sisley Young, Sisley Women and Men.

Doubling up in Salerno Meanwhile, Benetton doubles its presence in Salerno, the famous seaside resort on Italy's Tyrrhenian coast. After the success of the UCB megastore in Corso Vittorio Emanuele, the On Canvas concept is debuting in the Le Cotoniere shopping mall in Fratte. Five hundred square meters of retail space - hosting the Women, Men and 012 lines - all developed around the loom, the symbol of the weaving tradition of which Benetton is considered one of the most famous interpreters in the world and around which spaces, materials, paintings, colors and collections are all created.

In Russia with loveOn Canvas is also the model used for the new store opened by the Group last November in St. Petersburg. The new location, just under 500 square meters inside the Mega Dybenko shopping mall, strengthens Benetton's presence in Russia.

WELCOME TO THE SOUTHUCB adds two new retail locations in southern Italy, in Foggia and Salerno, while the On Canvas concept takes off in St. Petersburg

print their in-store photos and share them on different social media. The pictures were then given to guests in a personalized picture frames as a souvenir of the evening. The store registered excellent sales performance, among the best in Italy.

The best is yet to comeThe Trevi Fountain store opening

comes just months after those in Cola di Rienzo and viale Libia. But Benetton's strategy for the capital is nowhere near complete. «The United Colors of Benetton brand in Rome benefits from a very prestigious and significant commercial presence; the capital is a strategic fortress city for the green brand» comments Marco Messini, chief distribution & sales officer of United Colors of Benetton. «Together with Milan, Paris and many other European capitals, it is indeed a key city for us, where we can develop our corporate strategy».In addition to the 16 stores already operating in the Rome area (six of which are directly operated), another five store openings are in

fact scheduled, confirming how the Eternal City is central to the brand's development. These additional stores include a 300 square meter shop in the non-Schengen area of Leonardo Da Vinci airport's Terminal 3, a sign of Benetton's increasing attention to those traveling as also demonstrated by the new store at Linate airport and the upcoming opening at Malpensa airport.

Foggia

St. Petersburg

viale LibiaCola di Rienzo

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BENETTON'S VERY OWN STELLA

For the first time, the United Colors of Benetton brand has partnered with an external designer - Stella Jean, a young designer who boasts important awards and recognition - to develop a new collection. The result? Twenty feminine garments that reinterpret the brand's pillars - knitwear and color - from a completely new perspective.

Opposites complement each other"Irony, memory, multiculturalism". This is Stella Jean's answer when reporters at the press conference for the launch of the capsule collection asked her what three adjectives she would use to define her work. After all, it is precisely the desire to bring different cultures and identities together that most characterizes the items in this special collection. In fact, she has always mixed Italian style with the textile traditions of the world's southern countries. It is a natural process for her, the daughter of an Italian father and a Haitian mother: she herself embodies the value of mixing different cultures (a theme that has always been important to Benetton as well). In this case, the history of American Indians meets Italian textile tradition: in fact, each garment in the collection is characterized by a stylized figure of a Native American protector-ancestor spirit.

Helping out the less fortunateThe reference to American Indians highlights another central aspect of Stella's production: the attention

BENETTON’S FIRST-EVER COLLABORATION: A CAPSULE COLLECTION FOR THE WINTER SEASON BY THE FAMOUS ITALIAN-HAITIAN DESIGNER STELLA JEAN: A SYNTHESIS OF HER STYLE BASED ON ETHNIC INFLUENCES AND SOCIAL COMMITMENT

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Benetton's commercial network and clients were front seat at a catwalk presentation of the Fall

2017 collection, held recently in Castrette. The fashion show took place on November 14 before over 700 guests from around the world. After the fashion show five product "islands" were presented, each demonstrating a version of the season's main window displays. In the days following the show, to prep for the collection's in-store launch, buyers

and employees attended workshops organized in Castrette focusing on the collection's technical aspects.

LET THE SHOW BEGIN!FALL COLLECTION 2017

to social issues, which on this occasion led her to collaborate with women from villages in developing countries who taught Stella their styles, techniques and languages. In doing so, something that might seem like may a "simple" capsule collection is transformed into an opportunity to preserve a rich heritage of endangered knowledge: for example, some of the collection's matching accessories (bags, bracelets) were made in these very countries. Finally, this collection is also "democratic", as can be seen in its affordable prices.

Launch operationStarting December 1, the collection was put on sale online and in 100 selected UCB stores around the world, from Europe to Latin America, passing through India, Japan and Korea. A video and print campaign was also launched in the same period: it is very original and ironic, in full "Benetton style." In the meantime, the biggest players in the fashion world - media, socialites, influencers, bloggers - got a glimpse of the capsule at a special launch event on Tuesday, November 29 organized in collaboration with Vogue Italy at the Milan store in Corso Vittorio Emanuele II.

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Even the fabric that is the symbol of transgression has a geographic origin: it comes from the French city Nimes; denim therefore comes from canvas de Nimes. And denim is the starting point of Lettres de

Nimes, the exclusive event being organized by Sisley, itself an originally denim-only brand, born in France in 1968.

Fashion on the roadOn December 5, in the Sisley store in Piazza San Babila in Milan, illustrator Marta Biasi used her pop writing to customize garments chosen by 15 influencers from the Sisley collection. These were then posted on the influencers' social profiles. The catering was also "social", as it was provided by the foodblogger duo Gnambox. Marta Biasi (itsmartabiasi), known as the "Queen of the Sidewalk", is a hand lettering artist: her art, made with colored chalk, can be found on sidewalks throughout the city, although they don't last very long; they fade away and must constantly be renewed, redone, recreated. They are street art in the truest sense of the term, and denim jeans - pants that always accompany transgression - are the garments par excellence of those who live "on the road". It's like a fashion oxymoron: traditionally innovative.

THE ETERNAL APPEAL OF DENIM

Date in FlorenceThree other customer-dedicated events are scheduled for Lettres de Nimes. The Queen of the Sidewalk will be back to customize Sisley clothing in Milan, again in Piazza San Babila, on December 16 and January 27, 2017, and in Florence, on January 10, 2017, during Pitti week.

With the help of illustrator Marta Biasi, Sisley dedicates a limited series of events to the customization of denim, the most well-known and "transgressive" fabric

Grand finale for Rome's Outdoor Festival of Art and Metropolitan Culture. Thursday,

November 10 from 6 to 9 p.m., the Sisley store hosted a celebratory party at the conclusion of the event that, for a month, brought the major international artistic trends to the Capital. The double dj-set by Smash and Simone Chinaski served as the soundtrack to the thank you party

that involved many Sisley customers.

In the heart of RomeOn this occasion, Sisley definitely reaped the rewards of a brand awareness campaign that lasted through October, when the brand collaborated with the Festival in various ways: with Sisley Black Cards that offered discount admission prices to certain exhibitions, through the activities of five influencers who attended festival events in Sisley clothing and through a series of in-store initiatives.

CREATIVITY PASSES THROUGH SISLEYOUTDOOR ROME FESTIVAL 2016

On November 16 UCB presented its Spring-Summer 2017 Men's, Women's and Children's collections to the Italian press. And it chose an exceptional stage: a former milanese theater from the '40s that has since been turned into apartment. In fact, it's actually more of a house, a feature which connects well with the event's concept of "Benetton House". The idea was elaborated by Fabrica's creative team in different ways, from the invitation (a key) to the final gift (a pillow). Some 160 journalists attended the press day. After Milan the presentations moved to the main European capitals, Mexico and Japan.

THE BENETTON HOUSE OPENS UP TO THE PRESS

PRESS DAY

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Knitwear, color, social responsibility. The designer and our brand have many things in common. It was only a matter of time before we "knit" the knot. Here Stella Jean tells us "her" way of interpreting fashion

« It was 1985, my father was taking me to the zoo in Rome. He was holding me on his shoulders. I

remember that I was wearing overalls and a horizontally striped shirt from Benetton». This distant memory leads us into our conversation with Stella Jean. In recent days, it has been quite easy for her to remember the first time she encountered our brand. The official presentation of her capsule collection was set for the day after and the Italian-Haitian designer couldn't hide her excitement: testing a collection with the public is always the hardest part. But Stella has a successful career behind her, despite her young age (among international celebrities, Rihanna and Beyoncé have worn her clothes), and a profile that seems as if it was made on purpose to please Benetton's public.

Stella, why did Benetton

choose you for its first-ever collaboration? «I think that, even more than in our aesthetic affinity, we are united by the same way of thinking. We are both convinced that fashion is a terrific way to communicate something even more important; we love combining colors and applying the concept of multiculturalism to clothes. In short, there's an underlying harmony between my work and Benetton's world view: I think this is the main reason why they contacted me».

And how did you react to the "proposal"? Were you happy, or more...«Scared? (laughs, author's note) Well, it's normal to also feel a bit of responsibility, after all we're talking about a brand that's part of this country's history. It was also exciting to create a project for a company that has been a part of my childhood memories. But the closeness that I

have always felt with Benetton and its values reassured me; in fact, this collection wound up being pretty easy for me to work on. In short, ours was a perfect marriage».

Introduce your capsule to us, then. What was the initial spark? «To compose the collection, I started with two elements that seem to contradict each other: Italian culture, which is the main element of knitwear, and American Indian culture, especially that of the Navajo Yei tribes. I tried to get these two very different realities to meet through common sense and irony. The result fully reflects my style's characteristic features: color, métissage and social commitment. And memory: all twenty garments in the collection have stylized figures of the guardian spirits of the Native Americans, people who have lived as prisoners in their own home for two centuries».

BENETTON AND IA PERFECT MARRIAGE

STELLA JEAN

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«Instead of quoting designers of the past, I'd rather mention two people that don't seem to have anything to do with fashion: Rigoberta Menchú and Aung San Suu Kyi, two Nobel Peace Prize winners. Yet, if we think about it, their commitment is also communicated through their clothing: when they wear their national dresses with pride, they are sending a political message. In the end, they're fashion icons too».

This interview will be read by all of Benetton's employees, including those who have worked on your collection or will sell it. In closing, is there something that you'd like to tell them? Maybe a "style tip" for those who love fashion... «First of all, I want to give them my compliments - again - for the excellent work they've done. In these months Benetton was more like a

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For the collection's creation, you also involved Haitian workers, is that right?«It is. This is an issue that I care a lot about, and is also linked to my very personal, ethical vision of fashion: the populations of the Third World and developing countries are usually only considered as cheap labor. The fashion world must move beyond this idea. This is why I always establish real collaborations with village women in my work; they offer me their know-how, their centuries-old techniques of painting on fabric and wrought iron, and I integrate this knowledge into the collection. On this occasion, for example, the bracelets were made with Haitian techniques and the bags with Ethiopian techniques, while the actual production of the garments took place in Treviso. For me, this was a non-negotiable condition».

You have already referred, more than once, to the "ethical" component of your work. Can you explain your philosophy in this regard a bit better?«You see, in 2016 we can't simply evaluate a dress, a style, or a collection based on whether it looks good or not. Fashion is not just entertainment; it is much more. We can't be so detached from the contemporary that we don't address the larger issues that shake the world today, even if we address these issues from a particular point of view like the one of our industry. Earlier I mentioned multiculturalism, a concept that generates lots of fear and makes you want to close up like a clam or observe it passively. See, when fashion mixes colors, cultures and different styles, it is talking about the value of multiculturalism. When it gives voice to the American Indians, or to the women of the villages of the Third World, it is talking about counter-colonization. A social perspective that, at Benetton, you know well».

What are your sources of inspiration?

family to me than a company. As for style, which is

always something very personal, it's really hard to give any advice that's truly universal. The way I see it, the perfect look is the one that can bring different elements together: memory, identity, but also a world meeting, a métissage, and Benetton has all of these components within it. So those who work in this company have a head start: never forget that you are Benetton».

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The Evaluation & Feedback phase for the Performing UP process was launched on November 25 at a meeting attended by our top managers.

The meeting's goal was to share the implementation methods for this important new step in the process. But the workshop was also an opportunity to reflect on how leadership is expressed within a management team thanks to an inspirational seminar by Marco Grazioli, President of The European House Ambrosetti, our partners in the training project.

To ensure a correct and well thought-out implementation of this new phase of the process, in December the Training & Development team invited all 400 employees involved in the 2016 pilot program back into the classroom.

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Performing UP: start phase for evaluation and feedback

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LEARNINGLEADERSHIP

ORIENTAL FLAVOURSARAH ANAM COOKING SESSION FOR A SPECIAL DINNER IN PONZANO

After having creamed her competitors and winning the Corporate Super Chef India competition, Sarah Anam, our colleague and winner of the contest, was asked to bring some oriental flavors to our headquarters

in Ponzano.No sooner said than done: the Training & Development Team took the opportunity of Sarah's visit to HQ to ask her to help organize a

dinner based on traditional Indian recipes. The event, held in Ponzano on November 15, was well-attended by representatives of all of our sales channels, including Marco Messini, chief distribution &

sales officer UCB, Piero Maldini, corporate retail director and Christian Prazzoli, UCB wholesale & franchising director, as well as the UCB store department managers. A very… finger-licking evening!

Overall, the 12 training sessions of the pilot program introduced the topics of evaluating employee goals and skills and sharing knowledge on the important things to know for the effective processing of feedback.

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RELATIONSHIPS AS A FACTOR OF SUCCESSOn November 22 and 23, the second edition of the training course dedicated to Sisley FOS partners - entitled Relationships as a factor of success - was held at our Headquarters.It was an opportunity to involve all the franchise partners who hadn't attended the first edition; now nearly all of those concerned have participated. And speaking of factors of success... the course transferred to partners the necessary training to better manage their staff and guarantee extra attention to relationship management and effective communication. With these initiatives, the Training & Development department wants to provide its business partners

support for optimizing store staff performance, by focusing the training initiative on the attendees and their staffs.

Elena Staleva works in our UCB shop in Corso Vittorio Emanuele II in Milan as a sales assistant. For 10 years, she

has worked hard to "satisfy every client before they leave the store". She clearly attains this goal quite well, as her loyal customers have crowned her Sales Assistant of the Day.Behind the name there's also a play on words: Il Giorno (which in Italian means "day") is in fact the name of the newspaper that initiated this

BY A HANDFUL OF VOTES

competition. The publication asked its readers to vote for the best sales assistant in Lombardy and Elena won the Palme d'Or, with 366 votes, overtaking Alessandro Vegetti - a bookshop sales assistant in Legnano - in the final rush. It is a well deserved victory that certainly was not easily earned if you consider that most of the customers visiting her store are tourists.Loyal customers, therefore, expressed their thanks, as did

"Our" Elena Staleva has become the Sales Assistant of the Day

Marco Messini, UCB chief sales & distribution officer and Piero Maldini, corporate retail director, who rewarded Elena's efforts with a certificate and a TV 31100 sweater.In her visit to our Headquarters, Elena was also able to visit our archives, Fabrica and the new Seamless offices.

PLANNERS WITH FULL MARKSIn 2016, the Training & Development team launched WHO IS A PLANNER?, a training program designed and dedicated to franchising planners. Since March, over 40 planners from the cross brand franchising channel have participated in this program, which was aimed at developing awareness of their role and providing the technical and "lateral" skills necessary to best carry out their jobs. After eight 8 days and over 60 hours of training, on November 8 and 9 the Sisley planners crossed the finish line first, fixing the brooch "I'm a Planner" to their chests, while in a few months it will be the UCB brand's planners' turn.What did the participants have to say about the program? "We were given the opportunity to get take on the challenge and explore dynamics we had never considered before""Great interaction, the right stimuli: we turned into a great, cohesive group""We would like to explore all the topics discussed in greater depth and have more time for these training initiatives" Play

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AN "ATTRACTIVE" PEOPLE STRATEGY

Benetton's people strategy is increasingly oriented towards people care. This strategy aims, among other things, to make us attractive to the “talentsumer”, the most discerning talents, those who consider a number of additional elements other than salary when choosing among employment options. Our attention to human capital was the central focus of the AIDP (Italian Association for Personnel Management) meeting, organized by the Rewards and People Care team

BENETTON HOSTS THE HR MEETING ON REWARDS AND PEOPLE CAREand held on November 24. During the meeting, which was attended by almost 200 outside guests at the Studios in Castrette, our global HR director, Giuseppe Cavattoni, presented all the initiatives of the people care BENETTON FOR YOU plan. But the issue that attracted the most attention from the audience was Smart Working, which was only introduced recently, but has already achieved wide consensus and positive feedback within the Company. Even with this... Benetton attracts talent and is trendy!

With almost 2 and a half million resumes in its database, Almalaurea is a perfect partner when looking for future colleagues: that's why we participated in "Almalaurea International" Career Day on November 16.

Our employer branding attracted many ambitious new graduates (over 400 interviews were carried out in one day), so we had our hands full, but to each of the most promising candidates the company dedicated the attention they deserved, thanks to an updated formula compared to previous editions. The day ended on a positive note: the conversion rate between interviews and graduates hired was quite high with at least ten new recruits have been completed so far.

ALL IN LINE FOR BENETTONWE ARE AMONG ALMALAUREA INTERNATIONAL'S MOST COVETED EMPLOYERS

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WINNING TRAININGThe store manager’s growth is the focus of the activities of the countries

Poland: training achievementsMalgorzata Kregiel, UCB Poland HR manager, has taken the commitment to train and grow the group's DOS talents seriously. This is why the annual meeting organized by Aneta Pietka (country manager for Poland) and the retail manager Ewa Grzesiak - held in Cracow on November 23 and hosting 40 store managers - was a very special moment. On that occasion the UP strategy, which aims to cultivate in-house retail talents through training and development activities, was presented to the participants. 20 new store managers that successfully achieved professional goals within the Group in 2016 were officially promoted.

Mexico: “expert” store managersAfter seven months of training - organized by Maria Fernanda Leal, responsible for Training & Development in Mexico - at the end of November, the country store managers in Mexico became "Benetton Experts". The core training activities were based on the "golden rules of sales" and during the training period, 5 Top Talents - whose performance was above average, as could be seen in their stores' increased sales - stood out.

Turkey: In Store UP AcademyBenetton's Turkey HR Team has launched the In Store UP Academy, with a set of courses designed for store managers. The content of the modules are based mainly on the My Store Program - Benetton's distinctive skills development model - and the Golden Rules of Selling. The program started in

October and will end in June; in January some sessions will be held to evaluate the workshops' success. These activities are useful also for creating a store manager community that brings store managers together regularly to share best practices.

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Lucy Briaschi and Tiziana Bolfe: this famed mother-daughter

dance duo moves lightly yet powerfully, choreographing acts of violence against the female gender as well as the strength to rebel against such violence. "We

will weave our arms together to embrace and protect each other". This is the message of the video produced by Fabrica, Benetton Group's communication research center, in support of the United Nations' Orange Days: days against violence against women which last two weeks starting from November 25, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women.

One in threeWorldwide, one in three women suffers some form

Fabrica's campaign in support of the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women

DANCE SPEAKS UP AGAINST VIOLENCE

of violence during her lifetime, and often the perpetrator is inside her home. This alarming fact convinced the United Nations to include the elimination of all forms of violence against girls and women, both in the public and private spheres, among its Sustainable Development Goals for 2030. Benetton Group is also committed along these lines, primarily through its Women Empowerment Program, which promotes a number of concrete initiatives to combat gender violence. For example, the brand is working in Bangladesh to increase clothing industry women workers' safety in factories and in surrounding areas.

Stoned by petalsBenetton has supported the UN's Orange Days for some years now. In 2014 Fabrica produced an image and video where a woman was metaphorically stoned with orange-colored petals, while in 2015 the focus was on the importance of equal opportunities and non-discrimination in the fight against gender violence. This year the bodies and movements of the two ballerinas will call attention to a problem involving the whole world.

I t was renamed "the image that changed the face of AIDS" thanks

to its power and deep symbolic meaning. A man is lying in bed in a moment of extreme suffering, surrounded by loved ones. The image is not a reconstruction, the scene is dramatically true: the man is David Kirby, an American activist who allowed his friend Therese Frare to photograph him on his deathbed in 1990. Two years later, the same image became inextricably linked to a famous Benetton advertising campaign, authorised by the Kirby

AN ICONIC IMAGE

family. After almost thirty years, this image is still just as powerful, and Time magazine ranks it among the 100 most influential photographs in history.

A piece of historyFrare's photograph was not originally meant to be an image for a campaign. Or rather, the photo was not taken for any specific purpose; Frare took it on a whim at his friend Kirby's bedside and later it was published in Life magazine. It was Kirby's family who

decided to allow United Colors of Benetton to use the image, convinced by the history of the brand's social struggles and the desire to raise HIV awareness in the world. Time magazine recently published the image alongside the world's most famous photographs, including the close-up of "Che" Guevara, the famous Tiananmen Square "Tank Man" photo, the flag raisers on Iwo Jima.

TIME CELEBRATES THE 100 PHOTOGRAPHS THAT HAVE MADE HISTORY: AMONG THEM, A FAMOUS BENETTON CAMPAIGN

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In recent weeks the company has been involved in many fashion initiatives, reflecting the leading role it continues to play in this world

THE VOICE OF BENETTON

The just-ended month of November was rich in events for Benetton. The

company took part in a long list of prestigious initiatives, confirming its ability to participate actively and constructively in the debate related to the fashion industry.

A touch of green on the CroisetteThe presence of Benetton was particularly "visible" at the now traditional MAPIC in Cannes, the largest international trade fair dedicated to distribution professionals which, this year, focused on the digital market. From November 16 to 18, right across from the Palais des Festivals, the three Pop-Up cubes already seen in September in the center of Milan made their appearance. This time, however, the cubes didn't "project" the emotions of passersby, like they did in Milan; rather they served as true brand ambassadors, showing products, statistics and campaigns, all projected on the screens positioned on the cubes' sides. In short, a full-blown immersion in the Benetton universe.

Benetton in the chairThe 15th Corporate Culture Week in Venice deserves a special mention in the rich calendar of events. On November 23 at the Università Iuav di Venezia, the Benetton Archive was one of the stars of the conference which focused attention on the issue of digitalization, on the opportunities and challenges that new technologies pose for narration and interpretation of business history as well as for the preservation of the patrimony of knowledge, techniques and materials that make up the deepest identity of each company.Digitalization was also the theme of the 4th edition of Decoded Fashion, the international fashion-tech summit held in Milan on November 15 and 16. During this event, Benetton was invited to present its point of view on the issue of the connection between fashion and digital, which has changed market strategies.

In the wool districtProduction was more directly the subject of discussion during the

two days of "A Vision for Wool" (held in Biella, November 28 and 29), a round table organized for reflecting on the future of the wool industry. The choice of Biella was not casual: the town is the heart of Europe's oldest textile district and the point of origin of the so-called 'Wool Road'. The Treviso-based company was part of a large group of specialists who sat down to discuss possible developments in the sector, growth opportunities and medium and long-term goals.

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Decoded Fashion Corporate Culture Week

Mapic

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THE COMPANY HAS DEVELOPED AN IMPORTANT ALTERNATIVE TO SYNTHETIC COLORS: DYES OF NATURAL ORIGIN

Color and social responsibility have always been two of the pillars upon which Benetton is built. Using natural elements to produce alternative dyes for our garments is thus

a logical consequence of our commitment to being socially responsible. For Fall/Winter 2016 a line of T-shirts was designed that is made exclusively with vegetable dyes. At root, is a simple but innovative idea: use a selection of plants - from juniper to pomegranate, from chestnut trees to walnut trees - to

SUSTAINABILITY

COLOR ARTISTS

dye garments, using the traditional process of infusion: a perforated bag holding the plant is immersed in hot water, which is then colored and in turn dyes the fabric.

All the colors of naturePlants are just the beginning. The next step in the world of dyes is to use minerals to color fabrics; once they are mechanically ground down, they become coloring powders. The use of soil is also being tested, as it can be used to create thick pastes which, when combined

together or diluted, create different shades of color. The range of shades obtained varies depending on the element used: vegetable dyes create powdery colors, mineral dyes create brighter colors, and soil dyes create warmer and pastel colors.The ability to dye fabrics with materials taken directly from the natural world is an important alternative to coloring garments using synthetic dyes. That's why Benetton Group invests resources in the research and development of innovative tools to ensure the safety and quality of its garments.

IDENTITY

C hristmas in Fabrica. Saturday, November 17 from 11 a.m. to

10:30 p.m., Benetton's creative workshop exceptionally opened its doors for a day of shopping, talks, live music and street food.

It was a precious opportunity for guests to "throw" themselves into the search for the most original holiday gift ideas as well as attend talks and exciting meetings with the brands and international artists that

participated in the event. The day's program was further enlivened thanks to a psychedelic rock concert by the New Candys and a group toast with Botegon beer.

CREATIVITY UNDER THE CHRISTMAS TREE

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ETERNAL SISLEY STYLE

A talk with two storemanagers: from

Palermo to Marcianise,the voice of

our colleagues

How long have youbeen workingfor Benetton?

Tell us what you seeout of your store now

Which is your favouriteitem of clothing?

And the best sellerin this period?

What is your secretwhen you talkto a customer?

What would you liketo tell to your colleague

in this page?

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FEDERICA LUONGO Store manager - Marcianise (Caserta)

ANDREA SCLAFANIStore manager - Palermo

1 "The most beautiful, immense and sublime metropolis in the world": this was how a Berber geographer defined Palermo... and this is what I still see outside my store today.

2 I've worked with Sisley for 6 years, living each one lived passionately at full speed. It's been an adventure full of satisfaction and professional growth!

3 I love the the Helsinki super skinny jeans, for their adaptability to any look. Our clothing's appeal, style and glam seduce our customers, everything sells great! Love is eternal as long as it's Sisley.

4 I love conveying my passion and being a reference point. We don't simply sell clothes: we sell style, tales of a changing world, and we are the narrators of this change. Outside the store, the customer should talk about us.

5 "Fashion passes, style remains"... at Sisley we become style, we are style, we stay in style!

1 From the second floor of our store I can see Naples, which is already full of Christmas spirit! I love Naples this time of year: there's a different atmosphere, even among the customers.

2 Since december 2011. At that time I could count the number of retail stores on the fingers of one hand. If I look back I think fondly of the long road I've traveled.

3 The garment we sell most, and that I love too, is a maxi cream pullover in alpaca with gold laminate, matched with the loose, acid wash Valencia jeans.

4 I try to create empathy. I like to convey enthusiasm and excitement, and help customers choose the most well-suited looks: often you buy clothes to feel good about yourself.

5 I know Andrea and I'm delighted to participate in Periscope with him because we complement each other: he's rational and precise, I'm instinctive and chaotic, but our love for Sisley unites us.

Utilizing Benetton's historic yarn made of 100% extra fine Merino wool, this elegant dress incorporates a precious Norwegian cable technique and an ombré of color reminiscent of the autumn colors that inspire Cape Spear. Ashley Tyler

Head of UCB Design

CHRISTMAS STYLE

CLOTHES

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This 1993 fall-winter collection dress features diamond stitch patterns and a ribbed

turtleneck. We find these same features in the current collection’s dress, expressed with the same richness and intensity.