The famous French glassmaker Duralex, known for its “unbreakable” tableware, continues its fight to survive. After its transformation into a cooperative, the company obtained a loan of 750,000 euros from the State. But many obstacles still stand to ensure its sustainability.
A cooperative to save Duralex
After years marked by repeated crises, the Duralex glassworks, located in La Chapelle-Saint-Mesmin (Loiret), passed last April under the status of SCOP (cooperative and participatory company). This decision, supported by 60% of employees, was validated on July 26 by the Orléans commercial court. This status gives the 200 employees a central role in the management of the company, a choice intended to breathe new life into this emblematic figure of French industry.
The support of local communities and the State was decisive. The Centre-Val de Loire region guaranteed bank aid and the metropolis of Orléans offered to buy the glassworks site, for a sum of between 5 and 8 million euros. In addition, the State granted a loan of 750,000 euros via Bpifrance, intended to support the recovery of the company. This financing is part of the Economic and Social Development Fund (FDES).
Despite this support, Duralex remains faced with a delicate situation. Sales, which reached 31 million euros in 2022, fell to 24.6 million euros in 2023. The target set for 2029, with a turnover of 40 million euros, seems still far away.
An ambitious recovery strategy
To get things back on track, employees are banking on opening factory outlets. The first point of sale, inaugurated in Orléans, got off to a promising start, with 17,000 euros in sales on the day of its opening. A second store is planned on the historic Chapelle-Saint-Mesmin site, while a pop-up store should open in Paris in 2025.
But international competition and energy costs, which had already weakened the company after the surge in prices linked to the war in Ukraine, remain major challenges. Already in 2022, the State had to intervene by granting a loan of 15 million euros to avoid closure.
Duralex, often nicknamed the “Eiffel Tower of tableware”, symbolizes both the excellence of French industrial know-how and the difficulties faced by heritage companies in a globalized economic context. The coming months will be decisive in assessing whether this new cooperative dynamic will be able to ensure the lasting rebirth of this icon.
