When people talk about knitwear, most imagine clothing. However, modern technologies allow knitwear to be used much more broadly — from complex seamless products to interior, architectural, and technical solutions. It was precisely around this idea that the Latvian company SIA “From Air to Form” was established, which is the only company in the Baltics developing an innovative knitwear laboratory. Although the company has been operating for a relatively short time, it already works with more than ten clients from Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, Finland, Germany, and Hungary, and exports account for an increasingly large share of the company’s activities.
The company’s main area of activity is related to the development of new technological solutions, digital product design, materials research, and the possibilities offered by modern seamless technologies. In practice, this means that the company helps designers and clothing brands turn ideas and sketches into finished prototypes, develop technological solutions, and prepare knitting machine programmes so that the products can later be manufactured on an industrial scale.
“We are interested not so much in the product itself as in how it is created and what possibilities the technology opens up. Very often, it is the technology itself that becomes the main source of competitive advantage,” says the company’s procurator, Tatjana Miškine.
Nowadays, many European brands are finding that high-quality yarn and attractive design alone are no longer enough. The market is becoming increasingly competitive, while consumers expect not only aesthetics, but also functionality, comfort, durability, and new product-use properties. Therefore, one of the laboratory’s tasks is to help find solutions that go beyond the standard approach to knitwear. This may involve working with the shape of a product, new material combinations, complex seamless constructions, or digital design methods that make it possible to model the properties of the future product in advance. At the same time, the laboratory helps fill a market niche, as large manufacturers are usually focused on mass production and rarely take on the development of small collections or first prototypes for emerging designers and brands.
At the same time, “From Air to Form” does not position itself as a manufacturing company in the traditional sense. The laboratory mainly focuses on research, development, and the adaptation of technologies that can later be used in industrial production. The technological solutions developed allow clients to later use already tested products and knitting programmes in production elsewhere in Europe.
The company notes that new clients are attracted both through professional referrals and recommendations and through active participation in international industry events, which makes it possible to establish new contacts and develop cooperation in foreign markets. The company also actively uses the support opportunities provided by the Investment and Development Agency of Latvia, or LIAA, in its development. “Thanks to startup support for attracting highly qualified employees, we will be able to achieve our goals much faster,” says Tatjana Miškine, procurator of SIA “From Air to Form”.
Although participation in the business incubation programme of LIAA’s Jēkabpils representative office began only recently, the company already sees several opportunities to make use of the available instruments. “We plan to make the most of the opportunities offered by the incubator — including training and services, various events, and the opportunity to meet entrepreneurs from other sectors. Such meetings provide inspiration and valuable experience from other companies,” emphasizes T. Miškine.
In the coming years, the company plans to strengthen its presence in foreign markets, with particular attention to Scandinavia, where there is traditionally high demand for innovative, high-value-added knitwear solutions. At the same time, the laboratory will continue working on the development of new materials and technologies. One of the development directions is adapting particularly lightweight and heat-insulating New Zealand possum yarn for industrial production.
The company emphasizes that in the future, the technological knowledge accumulated in the laboratory is planned to be used not only in the fashion industry – new applications are already being sought in other sectors as well, while cooperation with universities and researchers is being developed to create new solutions.
The programme is funded within the framework of Measure 1.2.1.4 “Support for the Improvement of the Technology Transfer System” under Specific Objective 1.2.1 “Strengthening Research and Innovation Capacities and the Uptake of Advanced Technologies by Enterprises” of the European Union Cohesion Policy Programme 2021–2027.
