- 115 million consumers within a day’s truck journey
- 700,000 m² of warehouses
- 250 companies in the transport and logistics sector
- 4 modes of transport tailored to your activity: road, rail, air, waterway.
Troyes, historic knitwear capital
From Hosiery to Industry 4.0
From the 12th century, the people of Troyes have been weavers, clothiers, dyers, or launderers. The city flourished through the trade of these fabrics during the Champagne Fairs, and the term “hosiery” emerged in the 16th century. In 1559, King Henry II wore a pair of socks knitted in Troyes on the day of his sister Marguerite de France’s wedding, which was also the last day of his life!
At its peak in the 70s, Troyes had up to 25,000 workers employed in textiles, equivalent to a third of the population at the time.
Lacoste, Petit Bateau, Le Coq Sportif… many renowned brands were born in the Troyes basin and continue to expand their activities, managing their European logistics from Troyes or Romilly/Seine. Alongside these prestigious brands, more than sixty companies work across the entire value chain to create fashion items or technical textiles used in the fields of medicine, transportation, property and personal protection.
Today, industrialists share their projects and ambitions within the Knitwear Excellence Centre 4.03 (3 for Troyes!). They aim for performance through the integration of data and artificial intelligence in their production processes and logistics flows, with respect for both people and the environment.
Are you a creator… in industry? Create the textile of tomorrow and join a dynamic ecosystem… Sud Champagne is waiting for you!
Key figures
100
companies
8
companies labelled France Terre Textile
1st
hemp producer in France and Europe
3 000
jobs
1st
textile specialised logistics platform
What Sud Champagne has to offer
All the professions required for the manufacturing of a fashion textile item or technical fabrics are present in the region: creation, design, knitting, weaving, dyeing, finishing, cutting, assembling, laminating, embroidery, printing, screen printing, tailoring, and packaging.
8 companies benefit from the France Terre Textile label, guaranteeing at least 75% of the production in France.
Accommodation solutions tailored to the size of your business: business incubators, enterprise hubs, activity premises, logistic warehouses…
Available land at very competitive prices.
Major projects: more than 150,000 m² of new warehouses by 2025 in the Aube Logistics Park.
The Knitwear Excellence Centre 4.03 is a collective of companies and institutions from various sectors: industry, education, research, technical centres, local authorities…
It addresses major industrial competitiveness challenges around 2 themes: industry X.0 (automation, artificial intelligence, data management, on-demand production) and sustainable production (recycling, natural origin fibres – hemp, flax…). It gathers around prospective thematic workshops for concrete implementation within companies.
Its main actors include: Petit Bateau, Lacoste, Bugis, IFTH, ISIFT, UTT, Yschools, Technopole de l’Aube, Grand E-nov, Region Grand Est, TCM, CCI Troyes et Aube, UITCA, BSC
The Knitwear Makers and The Complete Textile Club, 2 clubs animated and managed by the Union of Textile Industries of Champagne-Ardenne.
Major project: reflection on a textile campus project dedicated to training and small series production.
A territory that values its people and their skills: 2 advertising campaigns (Decaux network of Troyes Champagne Metropole) have highlighted the employees of 5 companies in South Champagne: “Troyes, the capital of knitwear, professions / know-how.”
A benchmark: Petit Bateau has invested in “On-Demand Production” and aims to become the showcase for textile X.0. This project combines ecological and economic interests, with better control of materials used and waste reduction, as well as a decrease in raw materials and finished products inventory.
Opt for predictive maintenance with the support of the IoT Academy.
Incorporate the latest trends and new technologies of the future industry by collaborating with the Troyes Institute of Industrial Services for the Future (ISIFT) which also leads the Connected Innovation chair through technical meetings and conferences.
Industrial Transition Through Innovation (TIPI)
An engineering student supervised by a researcher teacher from the UTT helps you innovate, verify the feasibility of a product, integrate industrial trends, and future technologies.
- The Chanvrière de l’Aube, the leading producer and processor of hemp in France and Europe, has launched Canalia, an R&D program for the production of long hemp fibers for textiles. The goal: to optimize the quality of fibers and bio-sourced yarns that will shape the fashion and textiles of tomorrow!
- The European Hemp Pole, an innovative structure focused on the hemp resource, unites a multi-actor, multi-market ecosystem in a spirit of cooperation and co-construction. Its ambition: to become the reference in Europe in the field of the hemp bioeconomy. Join the textile group to precisely define your needs for hemp yarn!
- Major project: South Champagne is currently working on the creation of a textile recycling center in the Aube.
Lacoste, Petit Bateau, Le Coq Sportif, Logtex, Bouchara, the French Army… All manage their European or international logistics from South Champagne!
The major brands confirm their local roots and develop services requiring mastery of reverse logistics: returns of unsold items, second-hand market, and more recently, the launch of a clothing rental service by Petit Bateau.
To the south of Troyes, the Aube Logistics Park spans 250 hectares dedicated to logistics, especially for textile flows, for marketing through traditional distribution networks or e-commerce.
Find new markets at the CITEXT international business convention organised in Troyes by UIT Champagne Ardenne every 2 years. See you in 2024!
In 2022, the Pôle d’Excellence de la Maille organised the first Assises de la Maille (Knitwear Summit) in Troyes. This was an opportunity for professionals to meet and exchange views on key issues such as CSR, Industry 4.0 and innovation.
400 individuals available immediately to join a textile company setting up in South Champagne.
Continuing education is expanding with the creation of schools and internal training centres at industrial firms such as L’Atelier d’Ariane, Le Coq Sportif, Lacoste, Petit Bateau… Some workshops are open to employees from other companies, fostering a spirit of resource sharing.
Formations
Whether you’re looking for initial or ongoing training, find the right training centre to help your employees develop their skills.
Manufacturers in the Sud Champagne region are setting up in-house training courses in partnership with Informa, Maya Campus and IFTH.
Research & Innovation
A national technical centre based in Troyes specialising in knitting
IFTH supports your company in its R&D work.
The research focuses on new products or processes for transport, health, clothing and construction, and provides an innovative 3D knitting and integral knitting platform.
Integrate electronics, mechanics or pneumatics into your textile products
A subsidiary of Bioserenity, the LAB is an open R&D centre that studies your innovative textile projects, capable of combining 4 different technologies: textile, mechanical, electronic and pneumatic. From feasibility studies to CE marking and production, the LAB team can provide you with its expertise. Some of the areas in which we work: dentistry, oncology, sleep disorders, women’s well-being, maintenance and rehabilitation, neurology, ENT.
Ask the 360 UTT researchers
9 scientific and technological platforms are available for companies to integrate data and move towards the industry of the future.
More biosourced fibres for textiles
Fibre Recherche Développement, the private technical centre offering turnkey support solutions for the entire natural fibre application value chain: knowledge of markets and fibres, characterisation, fractionation, functionalisation, etc.
Some leaders
