'The French people want to save us': help pours in for glassmaker Duralex
8 hours ago
- #crowdfunding
- #Duralex
- #French industry
- Duralex, a French glassware company, successfully raised €19m in emergency funding from the public in just 48 hours, far exceeding its €5m target.
- The brand is deeply nostalgic for French people, symbolizing patriotism and industrial craftsmanship, often compared to Proust's madeleines.
- Duralex operates as a staff cooperative, with 180 of its 243 employees being associates in the company.
- The company's production process, largely unchanged since 1945, involves heating a secret mix of sand, soda ash, and limestone to 1,400C.
- Quality control includes rigorous testing for thermal shock resistance, durability, and stackability.
- Duralex's iconic Picardie glass, introduced in 1954, is celebrated as a modern design icon, comparable to Levi's jeans and the Swiss Army knife.
- The company faces high energy costs, with its oven consuming 360 cubic meters of gas per hour.
- Future plans include modernizing the factory, developing new products, and expanding into untapped markets like the UK and US.
- A partnership with the Élysée presidential palace shop will feature patriotic red, white, and blue Gigogne glasses marked 'RF' for République Française.