What Lonati does

Lonati S.p.A., founded in 1946 in Brescia, Italy, is a family-controlled industrial manufacturer specializing in circular knitting machines for the global hosiery industry. Its product portfolio spans 50+ machine models organized around two flagship families — the DC88X double-cylinder series (including the newly released DC88 DE 2H2 with two-feed integral heel/toe knitting) and the GE Series built on proprietary SBYS technology — supported by the ORION visual programming software and UNLIMITEX digital suite, which together enable 3D virtual sampling and automated design-to-production workflows. Lonati holds a near-monopoly position in women's hosiery machinery and covers 90% of sportswear and seamless knitting equipment, with claimed installed base reach across more than 70 countries via country-specific agents, dealers, and concept/flagship stores in China and Brazil.

The company monetizes primarily through one-time machine sales priced via direct quotation (FCA Brescia, offers valid 15 days), complemented by a recurring spare parts and components business via the ecomm.lonati.com portal (with promotional campaigns such as Black Friday -30% discounts), and by professional services through Lonati Academy for operator and technician training. Go-to-market combines enterprise field sales organized by machine type and geography, an event-driven motion across major textile trade fairs (ITMA, Techtextil, ITM Istanbul), and a digital content layer via corporate website and webinars. The firm sits within a diversified Lonati Group that also includes wholly-owned subsidiaries Santoni (seamless circular machinery, acquired 1989), Dinema (industrial electronics, 1993), Tecnopea (boarding/packaging), and ADB (mechanical engineering), with the founding family retaining control through the Fondazione Lonati. No audited revenue or headcount figures are publicly disclosed, though the company reports 501-1,000 employees, an 80,000 m² industrial footprint, and EUR 74.25M paid-up share capital.

Name

Lonati

Legal name

Lonati S.p.A.

Website

https://lonati.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1946

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

501–1,000 employees

Short description

Lonati S.p.A. is an Italian, family-owned manufacturer of circular knitting machines for the global hosiery industry, producing 50+ machine models and the ORION programming software sold to sock and hosiery factories across more than 70 countries.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Brescia

HQ country

Italy

HQ region

Europe

Offices6 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Operations, Technology or R&D, Personnel, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Circular Knitting Machines: Manufacture and sale of circular knitting machines for hosiery production, including single-cylinder and double-cylinder models (DC88X, GE Series). Machines are sold with FCA Lonati Brescia Incoterms, with pricing dependent on configuration, diameter, and specifications. Main product revenue driver.
2. Spare Parts & Components: Sale of spare parts, components and accessories for Lonati machines, including third-party manufacturer parts. Supported by e-commerce platform (ecomm.lonati.com). Promotional pricing events such as Black Friday (-30% discount) drive spare parts revenue.
3. Training Services: Lonati Academy provides tailor-made technical training courses for operators and technicians covering mechanics, programming, and electronics of circular knitting machines. Led by industry-expert technicians with hands-on demonstrations and exercises.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Lonati S.p.A. designs, manufactures, and sells circular knitting machines (over 50 models) for the global hosiery industry, spanning single-cylinder and double-cylinder machine families such as the DC88X series and the next-generation GE Series. The hardware is complemented by the proprietary ORION visual programming software within the UNLIMITEX® digital suite, which enables realistic 3D virtual sampling, and by an e-commerce spare-parts business and the Lonati Academy training service. The customer base spans sock, hosiery, pantyhose, sportswear and seamless-garment manufacturers in over 70 countries, served through agents, dealers, flagship stores and concept stores.

Product overview

Lonati S.p.A. is a world-leading manufacturer of circular knitting machines for hosiery, producing over 50 models of sock knitting machines. The product portfolio centers on two main machine families: the DC88X series (including E1320X, E142HX, E1430X models) featuring double-cylinder technology for socks production, and the GE Series representing the new generation with exclusive Lonati technology. Complementing the hardware, Lonati offers the ORION software - part of the UnlimitEx digital suite - which provides visual programming with 3D simulation for next-generation machines. The company also provides training services through Lonati Academy, spare parts via e-commerce, and technical support through a global sales network spanning over 70 countries.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• DC88X E1430X Circular Knitting Machine Double-cylinder two-feed circular knitting machine for production of men's, women's and children's socks in ribs, plain knit, links and links jacquard patterns. Features needle-needle single-magnet selection, brushless motor with variable heel and toe reciprocating motion, and is available in 3.5", 3.75" and 4" diameters with gauges 7-22. Targeted at industrial hosiery manufacturers.
• DC88X E142HX Circular Knitting Machine Double-drop cylinder circular knitting machine for production of men's, women's and children's socks in rib, links plain knit and links jacquard patterns, with single-magnet type needle selection and electronic size adjustment with automatic mesh correction. Available in 3.5", 3.75" and 4" diameters and finenesses 7-22. Targeted at industrial hosiery manufacturers.
• Lonati GE Series Circular Knitting Machines Next-generation family of circular knitting machines featuring exclusive Lonati SBYS (Links) technology, focused on efficiency, environment and evolution with unmatched performance, savings and reliability, and updated continuously based on market needs. Targeted at industrial hosiery manufacturers seeking higher productivity, energy savings and reliability.
• DC88 DE 2H2 Circular Knitting Machine Full two-feeds double-cylinder circular knitting machine with Integral technology enabling heel and toe knitting in double-feed mode during reciprocated motion. Features HF single-magnetic needle selection, brushless motor with variable reciprocation, magnetic encoder for cylinder positioning, electronic stitch cam adjustment with real-time correction, and active self-protection and self-diagnostic systems. Achieves approximately 80% reduction in compressed air consumption and about 61.5% productivity increase versus one-feed machines. Available in 3.5", 3.75" and 4" diameters with gauges 9-22. Targeted at industrial hosiery manufacturers.
• ORION Programming Software Innovative visual programming software for Lonati next-generation circular knitting machines, part of the UNLIMITEX® digital suite. Combines technical programming and graphic product design in a single platform with a mechano-textile rule engine, realistic 3D simulation, support for vector and raster graphic formats (SVG, BMP, JPG, PNG), automated error checking and an intuitive interface that replaces Digraph 3+ and shortens production preparation from months to days. Targeted at operators and technicians designing and programming patterns for Lonati knitting equipment.
• Lonati Spare Parts and Components Sale of spare parts, components and accessories for Lonati circular knitting machines, including third-party manufacturer parts, marketed through the dedicated e-commerce portal ecomm.lonati.com and supported by promotional campaigns such as Black Friday (-30% on spare parts). Targeted at the installed base of Lonati machine customers needing replacement parts.
• Lonati Academy Training Services Tailor-made technical training courses delivered by Lonati Academy for operators and technicians, covering the mechanics, programming and electronics of Lonati circular knitting machines, led by industry-expert technicians with hands-on demonstrations and practical exercises. Targeted at customers and partners running Lonati equipment.

Quantifiable outcome

• 80% reduction in compressed air consumption compared to traditional one-feed double-cylinder machines (17 NL vs 110 NL per sock)
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

AI capability4 records

Feature7 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core, flagship and minor.

• Shima Seiki MFG., LTD.coreTechnology or Integration · 16 May 2025Strategic alignment between Lonati and Shima Seiki for digitalization and sustainable product development in the sock industry. Operational compatibility between APEXFiz® (Shima Seiki's design software with 3D virtual sampling) and ORION (Lonati's programming software) enables the industry to move beyond traditional physical sampling methods. A coordinated launch of ORION and APEXFiz® Design-Sox was scheduled for June 2025, with a joint white paper explaining features and combined workflow.
• Santoni ShanghaiflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 13 August 2024Joint flagship store inaugurated in São Paulo, Brazil on August 13, 2024, strengthening both companies' positions as key players in Latin America. Builds on two concept stores previously opened in China (Yiwu and Haining, 2022-2023). Collaboration aims to respond more rapidly to industry needs, leveraging innovation-driven DNA of both companies, with the store serving as regional logistics hub and center for customer interaction.
• Next Technology TecnotessilecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThird-party certification body assisting Lonati in measuring energy and environmental performance of machines, compiling CLIMA certification documentation, and entering data into ACIMIT's CLIMA certification tool.
• IMQ (Istituto Italiano del Marchio di Qualità)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerItalian Quality Mark Institute, independent non-profit association that certified Lonati's environmental management system to ISO 14001:2015 standard for circular hosiery machine design, manufacture, installation and service.
• UNION (Japan)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLonati presented the new DC88 DE 2H2 model at a private show organized by UNION, held from May 20-23 in Amagasaki, Japan, showcasing the latest machine evolution to the Japanese market.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Comez (Macchine Tessili): Italian manufacturer of crochet knitting and narrow fabric machines — comparable as an Italian textile-machinery peer serving similar B2B factory customers, though specializing in narrower fabric categories than Lonati's hosiery focus.
• Mayer & Cie: Mayer & Cie is a German manufacturer of circular knitting machines for socks, jersey, and technical textiles — the closest direct competitor to Lonati, serving the same hosiery factory customers with comparable machine categories.
• Terrot GmbH: Terrot is a German circular knitting machine manufacturer producing equipment for hosiery, apparel, and technical textiles — a direct competitor in the same product category with similar B2B factory customer base and technology overlap.

Broad incumbents

• Karl Mayer Textilmaschinen: German manufacturer of warp knitting machines and technical textiles machinery — comparable as a European industrial textile-machinery leader with overlapping end-customers in textile manufacturing, though specializing in warp rather than circular knitting.
• H. Stoll AG & Co. KG: German manufacturer of flat knitting machines for fashion knitwear and technical textiles — comparable as a European textile-machinery leader with overlapping factory customers and similar software/design-system strategy.
• Shima Seiki: Japanese leader in flat knitting machines and computerized design software (APEXFiz®); Lonati's strategic technology partner with overlapping end-customers in the sock and seamless garment industry, and a major design-software competitor through APEXFiz® Design-Sox.

Others

• Groz-Beckert: German manufacturer of knitting needles and textile machine components supplying the same hosiery machine OEMs — adjacent to Lonati as a critical input supplier and ecosystem participant rather than a direct competitor.

Emerging players

• Pai Lung Machinery Mill: Taiwanese manufacturer of circular knitting machines competing on price in emerging markets; comparable product line (single/double cylinder circular machines) and overlap with Lonati in Asian and Latin American factory customers.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/lonati-spa

Compliance5 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Subsidiaries4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Lonati