A life in silk.
| Auteur | Scheuringer, Carina |
| Fonction | Business: made in Switzerland |
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Noble beginnings
Legend speaks of the suitably royal beginnings of silk. The first cocoon was reeled by none other than the Chinese Empress Xi Ling Shi. It seems like a fitting introduction to the world for the fine, luxurious fibre--except that it only happened accidentally, because the cocoon had fallen into the First Lady's cup of tea first.
China held the monopoly on silk for many centuries, but in the Middle Ages, the lucrative business reached Europe. When it did, it took Switzerland by storm. Mulberry plants were cultivated in the favourable climes of the south, while in the north, a flourishing silk production industry brought wealth and prosperity to Zurich. By the 1880s, Switzerland's position as a leader in the silk trade was paramount, with a third of the country's textile industry workers handling the precious fibres.
Yet, as the century turned, so did the fortunes of fabric gold. The introduction of synthetic fibres and cheap produce from China shook the industry to its core; the 1929 stock market crash brought it to its knees, and World War II sounded the final death knell. Today, street names serve as silent reminders of the former glory of the trade, but the once so profitable businesses have, for the majority, all but disappeared.
A new silk route
In the hopeful era of the 1980s, along came the Stutz siblings, Elsa, Andre (Andi) and Maja--a trio with inter-connecting skills but a solo vision to revive Swiss silk. "We were at the age when everything seemed possible. We didn't have much experience--just a short stint at a friend's textile company--but we thought we knew it all," Andi Stutz looks back at his thirty-year-old self with a smile. "It was a time full of promise and we had nothing to lose." They were belittled and ridiculed, but, with the help of family and friends, the siblings scraped together the funds they needed and, in a moment of "juvenile frivolity," they founded Fabric Frontline.
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Who better to go against industry trends and return Swiss silk to its former glory than a team of inspired optimists with the enthusiasm to match? They had no contacts, no official financial backing, only determination and a simple philosophy: to be true to themselves, and to put quality first. It was a rocky road, but the siblings were never late paying their bills--and over time, Fabric Frontline carved out a niche for itself and became one of Zurich's most prestigious addresses...
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