The origins of the Olimpias Group can be traced all the way back to 1982, when Benetton, undergoing massive expansion at the time, established - with a minority partner - the Maglificio Belvicino in Torrebelvicino (VI), which was subsequently renamed Stefani and finally became Olimpias in 1997.

Over time, given Benetton’s growing need for large quantities of raw materials (yarns, fabrics and accessories) with consistent, uniform quality standards, other textile companies located mainly in Northeast Italy, as well as throughout the country, were acquired.

At the end of the 1990s, the Olimpias Group was an industrial company that was highly integrated, both vertically and horizontally, within the wool and cotton sectors.

In the wool sector, the process ranged from combing to dyeing, both staple and piece wool, and from the spinning of carded and combed yarns to the supply of dyed and finished woollen fabrics and wool blends. In the cotton sector, the manufacturing process also started with the production of combed and carded cotton yarns and finished with the supply of piece-dyed knitted and shuttle-woven fabrics, including the process of printing on fabrics.

As a related business activity, the group was also present in the field of automatic distribution of auxiliary chemicals and dyes for industrial dye-works.

Following the turn of the new millennium, the great processes of delocalisation set in motion by globalisation - which have strongly affected the textile and clothing sector - forced us to inevitably rethink our production model. The migration of the centre of the global textile industry to countries with lower labour costs and the subsequent delocalisation of manufacturing made the industry’s business model more complex and exposed companies, especially those belonging to the medium-low quality brackets, to strong competitive pressures. The Olimpias Group, on the other hand, responded to this increase in complexity by raising the quality of its products and the technical performance of its fabrics and yarns to offer an increasingly better service to its clients.

Furthermore, the Olimpias Group has always invested heavily in the innovation and optimisation of internal processes, bringing about continuous improvements to its production equipment.

Following the change in the market, there were inevitable divestments and rationalisations during the first two decades of the 2000s due to the various needs highlighted by the market. Thus, the production companies that are now operating represent the manufacturers par excellence in the sector of carded wool yarns, shuttle-woven fabrics and apparel accessories.

Over the course of this long process, Olimpias, though it started out as an almost exclusive supplier to Benetton, gradually oriented its production volumes towards the market of third-party clients over the years to establish itself as a leading player within the European textile market.

Currently, over 80% of total revenues come from third-party clients.