Report on Spring/Summer 2027 textile trends and finishing challenges

Milano Unica 42 - January 20-22, 2026

Milano Unica 42 clearly showcased the textile trends for Spring/Summer 2027 and the technical challenges that manufacturers and mills face in realizing them. Many of the effects presented require advanced finishing processes impossible with traditional methods.

Milano Unica 42 trends

Sustainability as a technical requirement

Sustainability is no longer a marketing claim, but a measurable technical requirement. Brands demand concrete certifications on energy and water consumption. The main problem? Every defective batch requiring rework wastes water, energy, and time. Every meter of rejected fabric represents material waste. Long, complex processes consume energy unnecessarily.

The market seeks: processes that eliminate defects on the first attempt (zero rework), verifiable energy efficiency, and compact production systems that reduce environmental footprint.

Natural fibers with synthetic-level performance

Cotton, linen, hemp, and viscose (Lyocell/Modal) dominate collections. The technical challenge: achieving permanent softness, fluid drape, and immediate tactile comfort without chemical coatings. Brands reject silicone softeners because they close the fabric's micropores, reducing breathability by 40-60%.

Particular focus on recycled textiles (regenerated cotton, rPET polyester, Prato regenerated wools) which must achieve quality identical to virgin materials to be market-competitive.

Cosmetic textiles: the textile-cosmetics synergy

MU Cosmetic presented a revolutionary concept: textiles that hydrate, breathe, comfort, and protect the skin. Three themes (Sun - Radiant Beauty, Shadows - Hidden Beauty, Natural - Essential Beauty) requiring silky hands like cream on skin, zero irritation and dermatological compatibility for prolonged contact up to 16 hours per day.

Technical fabrics for sportswear

Technical jerseys, breathable mesh, and stretch fabrics dominate the sportswear sector. Requirements are impossible to achieve with traditional processes: soft-touch combined with 100% breathability, stable elasticity over time, and open structures preserved after finishing. Silicone softeners close micropores, making fabrics "suffocating" during physical activity.

Distinctive textures and industrial reproducibility

The market demands uniform effects across thousands of meters: brushed cottons with homogeneous pile, velvets with controlled luster, lambskin-effect fleece with identical curls, fulled wools with stable volume. The critical challenge is absolute reproducibility: brands reject entire batches if the first 100 meters differ from the last 100. Traditional drum systems create random fabric movement, generating inevitable inconsistencies.

Crisp hand and structured fabrics

Fabrics with crisp hand or crunchy feel (lively, with elastic recovery and structure) are trending for structured, formal, and sportswear. Most-requested materials: crisp linen (natural, rustic hand, maintaining a rigid, fresh consistency), crunchy cotton (lively nature, ideal for shirting, maintaining shape), sculpt/shaping fabrics (shaping materials with elastic recovery and breathability for sportswear), debossed satin with a silk hand (luster with structured consistency). These fabrics guarantee body and support, maintaining freshness on the skin.

Other significant trends

Stretch denim: controlled color reduction, maintaining fabric elasticity. Upholstery fabrics: velvets, chenilles, bouclés with textures resisting daily use. Technical mesh: open structure for sports footwear with preserved ventilation. Fulled wools: stable three-dimensional volume and soft hand for menswear and outerwear.

Finishing challenges and Biancalani solutions

Biancalani's research on mechanical finishing processes addresses the technical challenges identified at Milano Unica. Each challenge finds a specific solution in our technologies.

Challenge 1: Softness without chemicals

The technical challenge:

How to achieve a permanently soft hand without silicone softeners that compromise breathability? Traditional softeners create a surface coating that closes micropores and disappears after a few washes.

Biancalani's solution (AIRO® and AIRO24®):

The AIRO® system uses controlled air transport, creating the "AIRO® Hand effect": mechanical softening that modifies the fiber's physical structure, not adding surface coatings. The result is permanent softness resisting countless washes, maintaining 100% breathability.

Applications: cotton, linen, hemp, Lyocell, technical jerseys for sportswear, recycled cotton (where short fibers tend to be particularly rigid).

Challenge 2: Industrial reproducibility

The technical challenge:

How to guarantee identical texture across 10,000+ meters when traditional drum systems create random movement? Brands reject batches where first meters differ from last ones.

Biancalani's solution (AIRO®):

The controlled air transport of AIRO® eliminates random movement. Every centimeter of fabric receives identical treatment. Zero twisting, zero permanent creases, zero defects. Texture is uniform from the first to the last meter, with absolute reproducibility batch after batch.

Applications: lambskin fleece, brushed cottons, velvets, all fabrics where uniformity is critical.

Challenge 3: Preserved performance

The technical challenge:

How to finish stretch fabrics and mesh without crushing structures or stressing elastomeric fibers? Traditional treatments apply mechanical tension, compromising elasticity and ventilation.

Biancalani's solution (AQUARIA® + AIRO24®):

AQUARIA® washes open-width, allowing fabric to relax naturally without tensions. AIRO24® processes without stretching. Result: mesh maintaining open structure, stretch fabrics with stable elasticity over time, fleece preserving pile height.

Applications: stretch denim, leggings, yoga wear, mesh for sports footwear, and high-pile fleece.

Challenge 4: Measurable sustainability

The technical challenge:

How to eliminate defects and rework, wasting energy, water, and material? A defective batch requiring rework multiplies environmental impact.

Biancalani's solution:

Absolute process control guarantees correct results on the first attempt. Zero defects means zero rework, eliminating fabric, water, and energy waste. Additionally, Biancalani systems are compact: AIRO24® replaces 3-4 traditional machines. AQUARIA® processes continuously, eliminating downtime between batches. Result: 30%+ reduction in process cycles and maximum energy efficiency.

Challenge 5: Dermatological compatibility

The technical challenge:

How to create fabrics for prolonged skin contact (up to 16 hours/day) without irritating chemical coatings? Cosmetic-wear requires rigorous dermatological standards.

Biancalani's solution (AIRO® + AQUARIA®):

Mechanical finishing adds no chemical additives on fabric surface. AQUARIA® completely removes oils and auxiliaries. AIRO® creates silky hands through physical fiber modifications. Result: total dermatological compatibility, ideal for cosmetic-wear applications.

Challenge 6: Crisp hand with elastic recovery

The technical challenge:

How to achieve on linen, hemp, and cotton a sustained, crisp, and crunchy hand (lively) with elastic recovery? Chemical treatments tend to over-stiffen or conversely over-soften, losing the characteristic fabric "snap".

Biancalani's solution (AIRO®):

AIRO® allows precise calibration of the fiber's mechanical support degree. Controlled air transport creates a lively structure, maintaining the material's natural elastic recovery. Result: linen and cotton with body and snap, ideal for structured shirting, formal wear and sculpt/shaping fabrics for sportswear.

Applications: linen for structured summer apparel, cotton for formal shirting, sculpt/shaping fabrics for sportswear.

Biancalani technologies in detail

IDRA: Controlled multi-channel milling

Operating principle:

Precise control of milling degree with 4 independent channels processing 4 types of different fabrics simultaneously.

Specific applications:

Prato regenerated wools: mechanical softening on shredded fibers, with productivity increased by 300% (4 simultaneous fabrics instead of 1). Regenerated wools achieve virgin-quality.

Fulled wools: stable three-dimensional volume combined with soft hand, ideal for menswear and outerwear.

Conclusion

Milano Unica 42 confirms that the textile future belongs to those who combine:

• • Natural fibers enhanced by mechanical finishing
• • Measurable sustainability through efficient processes, eliminating rework
• • Distinctive textures industrially reproducible
• • Functional performance preserved after finishing
• • Dermatological compatibility for cosmetic-wear applications

Mechanical finishing represents the necessary evolution to satisfy these requirements. Biancalani technologies transform technical challenges into innovation opportunities, making possible effects and hands that traditional processes cannot achieve.

Biancalani's role in the industry: technology partner supporting manufacturers and mills in realizing trends that would otherwise remain concepts, impossible to produce at an industrial scale.