Tender care for babies’ skin aged 0 to 24 months. In Grinzane Cavour (Piedmont region, Italy) Filobio makes baby clothes, and conducts toxicity tests of natural fibre yarns used to make the garments. Baby customers demand great car. Fashion is not just a matter of following market trends. It is a matter of following one’s heart too. This is Filobio’s daily commitment. Filobio is a small company operating in the baby and children wear segment. Its range includes fashion for 0-24 month old babies with great attention to materials and tireless research. Actually, this is the first company in this segment recently certified by the Associazione Tessile e Salute (Health & Textile Association). Such an important certification relies on a thorough check by experts from the certifying agency of the entire manufacturing process involved in the making of Filobio collections. In fact, fabrics are not only checked and analysed while monitoring every step of the manufacturing process, they also go through release tests in the lab to check its actual healthiness and atoxicity. It all starts from the initial idea of using organic cotton for the benefit and the health of babies, they say. It was a useful approach, even with a view to preserve the environment and the future. A belief that evolved naturally into the search for other organic yarns to use for their products, like hemp, wool, silk, cashmere, while expanding the range with new ideas. All products in the range are made of natural fibres and aim primarily to the users’ health.
Company’s History
«The Filobio trademark – the owner Paola Alluvione explains – was designed in 2006. In 2012 the current shareholders took over the company; since then I have been managing it as sole director. It is a tiny business based in Grinzane Cavour (Piedmont region), a few miles from Barolo, in the heart of the Langhe area. A wonderful location within a Unesco world heritage site. 
Filobio is growing, yet it remains a small business with a young team, working in an easy, light-hearted environment. Our team includes: Giovanni in charge of international sales and certification; Paola who is our sole director, Daniela in charge of the customer service and coordinating the collections; Massimo is our sales manager; Silvana is the pattern maker; Lorella is in charge of prototypes; Stefania is in charge of communication and design ».
Children are our Object
«Our focus – the owner continues – is manufacturing in respect of nature and the health of our children’s skin. Fashion is a second goal, quality of materials and dyes being our priority. Our philosophy brought us to fashion for babies; this kind of choice comes naturally, when the delicate skin of new-borns and babies is at stake. Actually, some mothers demand that we consider adults too. Fortunately, the philosophy of organic materials is well accepted by younger generations. 
We use certified organic cotton, currently partly made in Italy and partly made in Portugal. As a certified entity, we are constantly in touch with cotton producers and demand tests while checking the entire supply chain directly. We pay great attention to these requirements, starting from style aspects, which, in turn, depend on whether or not a garment or finishing process meet our requirements. It is not so easy to those who are not used to this attitude. In my opinion, in the future it will be an automatic reflex, as it already is, say for separately collected fractions at home. For the time being, the fashion industry still is very far from such a vision and people think we are “so boring” to ask for yarns and accessories that meet specific criteria. Beside this preparatory work, we also conduct tests and checks to make sure that our products meet the requirements and to be able to renew the Certification».
New Fabrics, New Yarns
Just to give an example, our Autumn/Winter 2016/17 collection for babies offers some new fabrics and yarns developed on four themes: Watercolor, Spot & Stripe, Magic Wood, Neve e Natale (Snow and Christmas). Watercolor features chenille and jersey fabrics. The theme is water colour shades, with Anito’s friends (Filobio’s mascot and logo), drawn by hand by the cartoonist Patrizia Comino in number of new, funny all-over-printed patterns, developed for onesies and footed pants or for contrasting inner lining of reversible garments. The Spot & Stripe range plays with spots and stripes, offered in the new shades Warm Gray and Blue. Here again, the Filobio Friends group develops double layered jersey and fleece fabrics, designed and selected by our own team to offer children elegant, warm and easy-care clothing. Magic Wood is nature at its best. Quality Italian artisanship offered in a unique, individual design. All items are made in Italy. Shades, fabrics, yarns loudly recall the beauty of the woodland. Strong colours matched with new warm fabrics, like extremely soft flannel cloths. Not to forget merino’s wool garments, with a touch of pure cashmere in a few precious items. Finally comes the fourth and last collection named Neve e Natale (Snow and Christmas): snowflake jacquard of merino’s wool, hand-made silk-screen prints on evergreen bibs and jumpsuits. «Currently, – Paola Alluvione adds – we design our collection for 0-24 month old babies, including layette textile items, like jumpsuits, small blankets, onesies, bibs and towels. The range includes three lines: “Gift”, a line of birth gifts made of a special texture with our logo; a fashion line of multicolour items and a “baby kit” line of special sterilised items for new-born babies. At our site in Grinzane Cavour we select fabrics, styles, patterns and do the prototyping. The items are manufactured at Piedmont and Lombardy based factories. Part of the production is made in Portugal in the Porto area. We monitor the shipping and stocking operations from here. As regards marketing of our trademark, we sell in Italy through high-end children wear and children care specialty shops. Of course, we sell online too. This year we started selling abroad in Japan, South Korea and United States».
by Sanzia Milesi
