Business toolkits to accelerate sustainable and circular fashion SMEs - "Small But Perfect" project closing workshop
“Small but Perfect” project to boost growth of born-circular and born-sustainable SMEs.
On the 25th of May 2023, the closing event of the Small but Perfect project was held at Bocconi University.
Small but Perfect (www.small-but-perfect.com) is a 3-year collaborative project co-funded by the European Commission’s COSME program to accelerate fashion SMEs and to promote circular and sustainable business models. The project selected 27 startups, which received a grant of €10.000 each to employ in research and development and the overall business development of the SME.
The event, held at one of Europe’s leading business schools and organized in collaboration with CNA Milano, focused on the “Train the Trainer” activity, which consists in a dissemination moment between the partner organizations and the European enterprise network, particularly 50 from the Enterprise Europe Network Textile Group.
The full toolkits are open access and can be consulted on the Small but Perfect website in the “Accelerator Resources” section.
The toolkits concern several aspects relevant to SMEs’ development and circularity, particularly:
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Creative Accountability
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Circular Business Models
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Circular Fashion Manufacturing and Production
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Logistics
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Extended Lifetime
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Policy Dialogue Toolkit
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Doing Business Differently
The partners involved in the initiative were from several EU countries and included multiple stakeholders, including universities, associations, innovation hubs and business support organizations.
The complete list of the partners can be accessed below:
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Athens University of Economics and Business
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Bocconi University
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Common Objective
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Fair Trade Advocacy Office
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Fashion Revolution (Global, Portugal, Germany, Greece)
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Impact Hub Lisbon
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Studio MM04
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University of Portsmouth
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WLY Communications
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World Fair Trade Organization
Bocconi University and particularly ICRIOS Research Center, which supported Small But Perfect in all stages of development and has been leading the Needs Analysis and Train the Trainer activity of the project also presented an analysis focused on SMEs’ needs, part of the White Paper already presented to the European Parliament on the 25th of April.
The needs of the SMEs were classified into 8 categories, namely: financial, economic, supply chain and market-related, technological, mentoring & networking, regulatory, information and socio-cultural.
The goal of the analysis was to understand SMEs’ needs to guide policymakers’ decisions and adapt policies also according to the needs of smaller enterprises.
“Bocconi University and SDA Bocconi School of Management have been contributing very intensely sustainable fashion education and research for the past 3 years with the goal of creating synergies to improve the overall sustainability and circularity performance of companies in the fashion industry. I would like to share my gratitude with the European Commission DG GROW, all Consortium Partners and Bocconi core team for the full commitment to the Small But Perfect project” adds Emanuela Prandelli, LVMH Associate Professor of Fashion & Luxury Management within the Department of Management & Technology of Bocconi University
“During the Small But Perfect project Bocconi University has been leading the needs analysis of born sustainable and born circular SMEs in fashion and the train the trainer activities. Multistakeholder initiatives such as Small But Perfect are essential to answer the existing needs of born sustainable and born circular SMEs, especially when looking at the upcoming regulations. It will be key to provide dedicated training for instance on the adoption of Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR), Extended Produced Responsibility (EPR), Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) and the upcoming Digital Product Passport (DPP)” concludes Francesca Romana Rinaldi, Director Monitor for Circular Fashion, SDA Bocconi School of Management and Bocconi University Small But Perfect Project Manager.