Alcoy · Valencia Region · Spain

500 years of textile tradition in Alcoy

The city where RopaExport is based is not just any place. Alcoy is one of Spain's most textile-historical locations. The Real Fábrica de Paños, the country's first technical textile school and an industrial network that today leads the sector's circular economy were all born here.

A tradition dating back to the 13th century

The first documents attesting to textile activity in Alcoy date from the 13th century, during the Christian reconquest of the Valencian lands. The availability of water from the Serpis river and wool from interior Alicante flocks created the perfect conditions for developing a local wool industry. In the following centuries, the cloth-makers' and weavers' guilds structured production and laid the foundation for what would become one of the most important industrial cities in the Spanish Mediterranean.

During the 16th and 17th centuries, Alcoy specialized in high-quality wool cloth sold throughout the Crown of Aragon and exported to Italy and North Africa. The city accumulated know-how in dyeing, finishing and textile design, transmitted from master to apprentice in family workshops. This artisanal tradition is the basis of the grading and selection expertise we apply today at RopaExport to second-hand clothing.

The Real Fábrica de Paños and the Escuela de la Bolla

In the 18th century, the Spanish Crown promoted the creation of the Real Fábrica de Paños de Alcoy, an organization of textile manufacturers that received royal privileges and centralized local wool production. The Royal Factory marked a turning point: it introduced modern machinery, standardized qualities and professionalized the trade. Its documentary archive, recently digitized by Alcoy City Council, spans from 1561 to 1995 and traces five centuries of industrial evolution.

In 1829, the Royal Factory founded the Escuela de la Bolla, considered Spain's first technical textile school. The School trained generations of textile technicians who later spread throughout Spain, carrying Alcoy's knowledge with them. In 1853 the Ministry of Development gave it official status, consolidating its prestige. The Escuela de la Bolla is the direct predecessor of today's Escuela Politécnica Superior de Alcoy (EPSA), part of the Universitat Politècnica de València.

From the 19th century to industrialization

The 19th century brought mechanization to the Alcoy wool industry. Steam engines replaced the Serpis hydraulic power and factories multiplied. Alcoy became one of the most dynamic industrial hubs in the Spanish Mediterranean, alongside Barcelona and Valencia. The city attracted workers from across the region, developed a solid working-class social fabric and experienced the labour tensions typical of the Industrial Revolution.

During this period, the Alcoy industry diversified its production: in addition to wool cloth, it began producing cotton fabrics, table linen, knitwear and, in the 20th century, synthetic fibres. The flexibility to adapt to new materials and techniques is a constant in Alcoy's industrial history, explaining why the city could reinvent itself when traditional textiles went into crisis in the 1970s and 1980s.

The 20th century: reconversion and specialization

Spain's entry into the European Economic Community in 1986 forced Spanish textiles to compete in an open market. Many traditional factories closed, but others specialized in high-value niches: technical textiles, home fabrics, fashion and, more recently, textile recycling. Alcoy and its region retained a significant part of the industrial know-how and redirected it to new opportunities.

In parallel, a network of companies dedicated to the recovery and grading of used clothing emerged in the Valencia Region. Companies in Alcoy, Castalla, Cocentaina, Ontinyent and other interior Alicante and Valencia towns began buying clothing from municipal containers, donations and textile overstock, grading it and exporting it to Eastern Europe, Africa and Asia. This activity directly leveraged local textile selection expertise, giving a second life to the know-how accumulated over five centuries.

The 21st century: circular economy and textile recycling

In the last two decades, the second-hand textile and recycling industry has experienced explosive growth. Environmental pressure on the fashion sector, European regulations on textile waste and growing demand for sustainable products have turned textile circular economy into one of the highest-potential segments. The Valencia Region has responded with projects like RESURGE, promoted by Koopera with the support of the Valencian Innovation Agency, which aims to reduce textile waste sent to landfill by recovering and transforming it into quality recycled materials.

Companies like Recover (Valencia), recognized by Textile Exchange for its recycled cotton, Alcocertex (Alcoy), manufacturer of recovered textile fibres, Texlimca, specialized in textile recycling, and Reciclatex (Valencian cooperative), are part of a dynamic ecosystem covering the entire chain: from collection to transformation into new fibre. RopaExport sits at the grading and export stage, connecting local suppliers with European markets.

Why Alcoy is the perfect location for RopaExport

RopaExport's location in Alcoy is no coincidence. The city offers four strategic advantages rarely found together elsewhere. First, the textile tradition of five centuries guarantees a local workforce with deep knowledge of the trade: graders who can distinguish an original 80s Levi's from a modern reproduction, who recognize merino wool by touch and who understand the differences between sportswear brands. This knowledge is the basis of grading consistency.

Second, the supplier network of the Valencia Region. Alcoy, Castalla, Cocentaina, Ontinyent, Banyeres, Villena and other interior Alicante and Valencia towns concentrate a significant part of Spain's textile graders. This allows RopaExport to access significant raw material volumes without depending on a single supplier, reducing risk and improving price.

Third, logistics. Alcoy is 60 km from the port of Alicante, 110 km from the port of Valencia (the largest container port in the Spanish Mediterranean) and connected by highway to the entire Mediterranean arc. This facilitates container departures to any European Mediterranean, Atlantic or Baltic port in competitive lead times. The port of Valencia, in particular, offers regular lines to more than 30 countries worldwide.

Fourth, the innovation ecosystem. The presence of the Universitat Politècnica de València (EPSA), projects like RESURGE and textile technology companies allows RopaExport to stay up to date with innovations in grading automation, garment traceability and sustainability certifications. This is key to remaining competitive in a sector that is rapidly professionalizing.

An environmental responsibility

Working from Alcoy in the second-hand textile sector is also a responsibility. The textile industry is one of the world's most polluting: according to the United Nations, fashion generates 8–10% of global greenhouse gas emissions and is the second most water-intensive industry. Each garment we recover and give a second life is one that does not need to be manufactured again, with all the environmental impact that entails.

The RESURGE project estimates that each ton of recovered clothing avoids the emission of several tonnes of CO₂ equivalent and saves thousands of litres of water. RopaExport processes more than 300 tonnes per month, which means a measurable and verifiable positive environmental impact. It is not greenwashing, it is the reality of the circular economy in action. And it is possible thanks to the five centuries of textile tradition of a city that has known how to reinvent itself without losing its industrial identity.