“A real pride in doing something with your hands”

Launched in 1983, wool production in the Missègle workshop, in Tarn, exploded a few years later. The company now has a turnover of 10 million euros and sells 400,000 pairs of socks per year.

Myriam Joly likes, she says, “adventure”. The one in which it launched in 1983, today has 55 employees, achieves 10 million euros in turnover by selling 400,000 pairs of socks per year.

40 years ago, Myriam Joly was an agronomist when she decided, just out of school at the age of 26, to start producing wool that she could sell directly on the markets. Based near Castres, in the Tarn, the young woman chose to bring goats from Texas, shear them and she spoke to local manufacturers.

Focus on ‘Made in France’ creation

When, in 2007, the neighboring sock manufacturer ceased its activity, Myriam Joly followed her intuition and took over the business. His sales are soaring. “At a time, she recalls, where no one relied on French textiles. On the contrary, I believe that there is real value and real pride in doing something with your hands.” Even if today, 97% of socks sold in France still come from Asia.

Socks that last longer

Making socks in France inevitably costs more, up to 30 euros per pair. “Our customers are people who are aware of the real cost of things. And while our socks cost more, they also last much longer.”

‘Made in France’ is not complete, since the wool also comes from yaks from Mongolia, or alpacas from Peru. “We are completely transparent, assumes Myriam Joly. Who defends “responsible purchasing”, with for example the concern for “animal wellbeing”.