Author: Kadence Trosper | Major: Apparel Merchandising & Product Development | Semester: Summer 2024
Our class during a professional appointment looking at luxury fabrics
This summer I spent two weeks submerged into the Italian culture of fashion through studying abroad. Before this experience, I had never been out of the country, and genuinely didn’t know what to expect. Now I can say with confidence that I will be returning to Italy in the future due to a life impacting trip.
As an apparel merchandising student, you must partake on a shorter study trip, also known as a study tour. With options in Las Vegas, New York, and Italy, I knew that I didn’t want to pass up the opportunity to fully go abroad. Ever since hearing about the program that offers an immersive experience into luxury fashion, merchandising, and production, I was captivated. Next thing I knew, I had purchased my flight tickets and was headed to Rome.
Rome was our first stop. Here we saw some of the historical sites such as the Colosseum and the Vatican. In this city we attended a workshop from a hat maker and even took a cooking class. In the blink of an eye, we were off to Florence. Within this magnificent city of spectacular history, architecture, and leather we witnessed so many different things. From a leather school, local artisans, sustainability workshop, to all the gorgeous and captivating museums. I truly admired Florence’s great beauty, walkability, ease, comfort, and of course the food.
With our next stop to Venice, I had high expectations of the city. Through our stay here we saw the production of fabric, sunglasses, and lace. Because you must rely on water transportation to get you to different places, along with Venice being strung out within 118 different islands, I don’t think I got to experience the whole city. Still, it was captivating. My favorite part about our stay here was seeing an international rowing competition happening right outside of our hotel in the Grand Canal. This made me appreciate the canals as I got to witness a different level of usage.
Our last stop, before heading back to Rome, was Milan. Most people are aware that Milan is the fashion capital of the world. This made me ecstatic to visit the hub of luxury apparel. Although it was the shortest stay, we still were able to visit local retailers, the Duomo, the fashion district, attend a workshop at a local tailor, and my favorite stop of the whole trip, a visit to Loro Piana.
Loro Piana is a luxury goods and textile company that produces both clothing and high-end fabrics. Starting from the finest yarns of cashmere, merino wool, cotton and linen, Loro Piana produces the highest of quality products for all markets. During our visit here we genuinely go to see the production of the most superior textiles, from start to finish. This included the process of carding wool, spinning it into yarn, warping the yarns onto bigger bolts, weaving that yarn into fabric, dyeing the fabric different colors, adding finishes onto the fabric, and finally the mending of any imperfections. This specific stop stood out most to me because I have taken many courses where these topics and processes are discussed. But to see it all happening right in front of me was so much more impactful and educational.
That is what I think made this trip so special and different from any experience I have had so far at the UofA; I truly got to see these educational principles of fashion right before my eyes. Instead of reading about these topics from a slideshow presentation, I got the opportunity to witness those exact things whenever I wanted. Many of the workshops we visited were little shops just right off the street, which made me question how much more potential I could’ve gained from locations I had not seen or known about. That is the beauty of Italy, many wonderful things are hidden gems.
Overall, I was most surprised at how easy the cities were to navigate. Even though we were only in each city for 2-3 nights, by the end of the duration of each stay, I was able to memorize the way back to the hotel as well as simple navigation of surrounding areas. This made the trip more enjoyable as I quickly was able to figure out where I was and how to get to the next destination.
I thoroughly enjoyed this faculty-led apparel merchandise study tour trip to Italy. As a spatial learner, this trip benefited me in ways that I did not expect. Now I have open eyes of how much more potential there is within the fashion industry, not only in America but abroad as well. Now I have bigger dreams and aspirations for myself and the business I aspire to open. I will take what I learned, what I saw, and even what I ate, with me for the rest of my life.