Pietro Semproni, an Italian fashion expert, speaks at a forum during the Spring/Summer 2022 Shenzhen Fashion Week. Photos courtesy of the interviewee

Semproni signs his autograph at a press conference for Redstone in 2012 when he arrived in Shenzhen to lead the reorganization of the Shenzhen-based fashion group.

Semproni in Shekou.

Pietro Semproni's fashion management course at the Shenzhen campus of the globally renowned Istituto Marangoni was one of the most sought-after classes, known for its comprehensive content and the valuable first-hand knowledge he shared with his postgraduate students.

His class offered "solid, valuable insights that most of us lacked in the practical aspects of the fashion business," said Sissi Lam, who was enrolled in the prestigious Italian fashion school during the 2020-2021 academic year in OCT-LOFT in Nanshan District.

Different perspective 

Semproni, probably due to his academic background in engineering, approached the fashion business from a different perspective in his class, emphasizing that working for a luxury fashion brand entails more than just design and styling. He highlighted the importance of other skills that are necessary for running a successful fashion business.

With over two decades of industry experience in engineering, operations and logistics, and management across sectors such as office furniture, leather goods and bags, and garments in both Italy and China, Semproni began teaching a postgraduate course at the Italian fashion school in Shenzhen in 2018.

"The [teaching] experience was very rewarding," said Semproni, whose diverse curriculum included topics such as supply chain, product management, purchasing, and merchandising — knowledge areas equally important to a successful fashion enterprise alongside creative design.

While his classes were engaging and enriched with case studies, some topics like supply chain involved a lot of numbers and calculations. "That was exactly what we lacked," said Lam, who has a made-to-order garment studio in Futian District's Chegongmiao neighborhood.

Return to SZ

An optimized supply chain reduces costs while ensuring high quality. Spanning from raw materials producers to the delivery of finished products to consumers, it involves hundreds of suppliers with diverse expertise and specialization. 

After conducting a preliminary audit of Shenzhen fashion group Redstone, which he was invited to join in 2012, Semproni determined they lacked that vital factor. 

He created a detailed reorganization plan by using several IT tools to address the company's supply chain issues.

His initiatives to synchronize the manufacturing, merchandising, and purchasing departments at a high-end Italian womenswear brand under Shenzhen-based Redstone significantly boosted operational efficiency.

With a complete and optimized supply chain, Shenzhen has emerged as a leader in the Chinese fashion industry. To achieve further growth and stand shoulder-to-shoulder with established fashion capitals like Milan and Paris, Semproni believes that continuous innovation is imperative.

Career ascension

The job offer from Redstone resulted in Semproni returning to Shenzhen nearly 20 years after his first experience with China. Recalling "numerous cranes standing out against the city's skyline" in 1995, Semproni said, "I wasn't aware that Shenzhen had gone through such rapid development."

At the time, Semproni was the chief operating officer of Bologna-based Borbonese, a small but renowned luxury bags and suitcases brand in Italy. He traveled to Shenzhen to inspect a factory in Dongguan that could be used to outsource the assembly of fabric bags and travel bags for the company. 

"Borbonese had operated through approximately 100 subcontractors in Italy, and I started looking to outsource part of our assembly process outside Italy," he said.

He was later invited by Patrizio Pertelli, CEO of Prada, to join the Milano-based fashion conglomerate to further develop its leather goods business.

His tenure with the Milan fashion giant sharpened his managerial expertise, particularly his ability to handle vertical organization, said Semproni, who added that working with small companies like Borbonese broadened his experience across various areas.

Now at retirement age, Semproni is no longer in the fashion industry. He is now focusing on the food and beverage business he ventured into 12 years ago. 

He owns an Italian restaurant and a coffee/bakery shop in Shekou and also provides catering services to private families and companies. 

As an entrepreneur, he believes Shenzhen offers an ideal environment for starting a business.

In his private life, he maintains a blog on his life in Shenzhen/China. "The lack of scientific reports from China in European news broadcasts created a lot of misunderstanding and bias, which I tried to reduce," he said.