Italian Trade Agency’s Erica Di Giovancarlo Tells Us All About EXTRAITASTYLE’s Italian Fashion Expansion!

Ciao! The Italian Trade Agency (ITA) took over Boom Boom Room atop the Standard Hotel last night to spotlight Italian labels from its EXTRAITASTYLE platform. EXTRAITASTYLE supports Italian brands’ connections to American retailers, working with over 70 established and emerging  brands across women’s and men’s fashion, shoes, handbags, jewelry, swimwear, and more. As the platform continues its mission of connecting US buyers to the best of Italian fashion, we sat down with Italian trade commissioner Erica Di Giovancarlo to learn more about its goals, digital and physical presentations, and more.

Erica Di Giovancarlo, Giorgia di Michele

How does it feel to be hosting ITA’s big event in New York City?
I deal with with different sectors. The agency promotes Italian exports, Italian companies of different sectors. This is one of the most beautiful, amazing, and astonishing, because first of all, fashion is a very beautiful sector. You can see so many beautiful products. You know that Italian companies are very creative, and you will find very high-quality garments, and it is already nice to see them.  There is a very beautiful atmosphere. It’s not only work for us, it’s passion. Not only for me, but also for my colleagues who work in this sector. They’re very much focused on their work, and they want to create a nice atmosphere to show the best of Italian production.

How important is it for ITA to support Made in Italy fashion and accessories brands, both digitally and physically?
Promotion must be both physical and digital. For sure, I like the physical promotion. [At] physical events, you can see the products, you can touch it, you can see it very well with beautiful accessories, and so on. It is like a beautiful movie, seeing the models with these beautiful dresses. But digital, of course, is a very good opportunity, both for companies and for clients and counterparts, because you can reach a lot of people—and it is fast. You save a lot of time. You save a lot of money, as well. And you can really show whatever you produce to a very wide audience. For the client, the buyer, it is a very good opportunity, because in a very short time, [they] can go through different products, analyzing them very quietly and calmly. You have time enough to go through them and select them, and maybe have a meeting with a company later once you have selected some of them. The combination of the two modes is perfect. We learned a lot from the pandemic when digital became a necessity. Without the digital, we couldn’t do anything. Instead, we realized that even if you are miles away, you can do your business. You can go on meeting people even if digitally, but you can go on with your business easily. This is also the the the goal of our platform, ExtraITAStyle.

How does the EXTRAITASTYLE.com platform work to support brands on the market?
It is a very efficient way of promoting Italian brands. We have more than 60 brands registered, with more than 3,800 different products. It is very much followed by the buyers, and it is always updated. Every year, twice a year, we renew our companies, we update the participation. Every company can participate, but only with good quality products and sustainable products.

Models at Boom Boom Room

What does ITA have planned for the rest of the year?
We are going on with this kind of activity, and maybe—whether by the end of the year or next year—we are going to organize another big event. Also, after having the outcome of this event that seems to be very successful. The place is beautiful, the location is beautiful, the people are very beautiful. It is a mixture of work and leisure. People come because they have to see the products and the garments shown by our models, but at the same time they can enjoy the beautiful location, a beautiful landscape, and great food and nice drinks.

What is your overall outlook on Italian exports for fashion and accessories to the US? Are things feeling positive?
It is going very well. I can say that after the pandemic period, that was a very sad period for everybody, and all around the world. Italian exports increased a lot. Especially in the fashion sector, we can see there is a very big interest for the Italian production. So, we hope it will go even better.

As a new Italian New Yorker, what are your favorite Italian restaurants so far in the city?
First of all, I love New York. I love living in a big city that is on the scene. This is a beautiful thing. Regarding restaurants, I like very much this way of eating here in New York. You have very nice restaurants where a lot of things happen; people speak loudly, and there is a nice atmosphere. It seems that there is a very beautiful interaction among people, and you can find any kind of food. Everywhere, you can find excellent food from every single part of the world.

Below, take a glimpse at Olivia Palermo, Edward Barsamian, and more chic guests at EXTRAITASTYLE’s sunset party at the Boom Boom Room.

All images: Kevin Czopek/BFA.com

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