Spurred on by a new generation, Moismont collaborates with Le Bon Marché
With a new generation at the helm, French fashion brand Moismont continues to expand its wardrobe, initially focused on accessories and more specifically scarves. With a chic style that's also bursting with pattern and color, thanks to its Indian manufacturing roots. Founded in 2012 by Martine Bijvoet, who had previously created and then sold the scarf brand Inouitoosh (now Inoui Editions), the label was born at the Domaine de Moismont, a vast family home in the Somme region that still draws its business from apple and pear orchards.
Her son Jacques Bijvoet took over the reins of the brand in 2022, and anchored its headquarters in Paris, where he works alongside his family. His sister works in production, while his brother-in-law looks after the finances. The gradual expansion of the clothing offer, in addition to accessories, has enabled the brand this year to imagine a real wardrobe for Le Bon Marché, where its products have been sold for many years. A capsule will be unveiled in September 2025 in collaboration with the department store's own women's brand, recently reformulated and named Le Bon Marché Rive Gauche.
Traditionally produced in India for the cotton models, and in Mauritius for the knitwear, the collection features blouses, skirts, pants, bibs, jackets, dresses and accessories priced from 35 to 265 euros. Available in shades of burgundy, green and dark blue, with some inspiration from Scottish tartans.
"There's a real connection between the Bon Marché customer and the Moismont customer. This collaboration shows that we've become a full-fledged ready-to-wear player. Clothing now accounts for almost 60% of our sales, compared with 40% for accessories and luggage," explained Jacques Bijvoet.
The brand, which generates annual sales of around 4 million euros, wants to be more visible, and this partnership should help. In fact, the next capsule will be launched with the family-owned Cyrillus brand.
Moismont's distribution is via its e-commerce site (which accounts for 10% of business), but above all via wholesale, which is its sole physical sales channel. The company has around 500 retailers, most of whom are based abroad, mainly in the U.S. and Asia. "We only produce to order, so we have extremely little residual stock, a slight risk weighing solely on the e-shop," he explained.
The good results of the brand - which employs a dozen people - give him confidence to expand, but without haste.
"We're profitable, and our annual growth rate has been 30% for the past five years. That's very encouraging, but as a family business, without investment funds, we can't finance more than growth. In the coming years, we'd very much like to open our first flagship store in Paris, now that our offer is more complete," he concluded.
In the meantime, Moismont will be setting up a pop-up store on rue Debelleyme in the Marais district of Paris for the festive season.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
France 24
4 hours ago
- France 24
China's top diplomat visits Europe pitching closer ties in 'volatile' world
Wang Yi's tour will take him to the European Union's headquarters in Brussels as well as France and Germany as China seeks to improve relations with the bloc as a counterweight to superpower rival the United States. But deep frictions remain over the economy -- including a yawning trade deficit of $357.1 billion between China and the EU -- and Beijing's close ties with Russia despite Moscow's war in Ukraine. "The world is undergoing an accelerated evolution of a century-old change, with unilateralism, protectionism and bullying behaviour becoming rampant," Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said on Friday -- a thinly veiled swipe against the United States under President Donald Trump. In that context, Guo said, Beijing and the European bloc must "keep the world peaceful and stable, safeguard multilateralism, free trade, international rules, fairness and justice, and act firmly as anchors of stability and constructive forces in a volatile world". Wang will meet with his EU counterpart, Kaja Kallas, at the bloc's headquarters in Brussels for "high-level strategic dialogue". In Germany, he will hold talks with Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul on diplomacy and security -- his first visit since Berlin's new conservative-led government took power in May. And in France, Wang will meet minister for Europe and foreign affairs Jean-Noel Barrot, who visited China in March. The war in Ukraine will likely be high on the agenda, with European leaders having been forthright in condemning what they say is Beijing's backing for Moscow. China has portrayed itself as a neutral party in Russia's more than three-year war with Ukraine. But Western governments say Beijing's close ties have given Moscow crucial economic and diplomatic support, and they have urged China to do more to press Russia to end the war. Trade tensions Ties between Europe and China have also strained in recent years as the EU seeks to get tougher on what it says are unfair economic practices by Beijing. After the European bloc placed tariffs on Chinese electric vehicle imports, China retaliated with its own duties, including on French cognac. An agreement on cognac has been reached with Beijing but not formally approved by the Chinese commerce ministry, a source in the French economy ministry told AFP. The source said finalization was partially linked with the EU's ongoing negotiations over EVs. Tensions flared this month after the EU banned Chinese firms from government medical device purchases worth more than five million euros ($5.8 million), in retaliation for limits Beijing places on access to its own market. The latest salvo in trade tensions between the 27-nation bloc and China covered a wide range of healthcare supplies, from surgical masks to X-ray machines, that represent a market worth 150 billion euros in the EU. In response, China accused the European Union of "double standards". Another sticking point has been rare earths. Beijing has since April required licences to export these strategic materials from China, which accounts for almost two-thirds of rare earth mining production and 92 percent of global refined output, according to the International Energy Agency. The metals are used in a wide variety of products, including electric car batteries, and there has been criticism from industries about the way China's licences have been issued.
France 24
6 hours ago
- France 24
UN conference seeks boost for aid as US cuts bite
At least 50 world leaders including French President Emmanuel Macron, Kenya's William Ruto, EU chief Ursula von der Leyen and UN head Antonio Guterres will gather in the city of Seville from June 30 to July 3. But key player the United States is snubbing the biggest such talks in a decade, underlining the erosion of international cooperation on combating hunger, disease and climate change. South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, whose country has tried to promote Global South priorities such as debt during its presidency of the G20 club of wealthy nations, cancelled his visit for domestic political reasons. More than 4,000 representatives from businesses, civil society and financial institutions will also attend the Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development. UN sustainable development goals set for 2030 are slipping from reach just as the world's wealthiest countries are withdrawing funding for development programmes. President Donald Trump's gutting of the US development agency USAID is the standout example, with Germany, Britain and France among other rich economies making cuts when faced with competing priorities such as defence. International charity Oxfam says the cuts to development aid are the largest since 1960 and the United Nations puts the growing gap in annual development finance at $4 trillion. More than 800 million people live on less than $3 per day, according to the World Bank, with rising extreme poverty affecting sub-Saharan Africa in particular. Disruption to global trade from Trump's tariffs and ongoing conflicts in the Middle East and Ukraine have dealt further blows to the diplomatic cohesion necessary for concentrating efforts on helping countries escape poverty. 'Global development failing' Among the key topics up for discussion is reforming international finance to help poorer countries shrug off a growing debt burden that inhibits their capacity to achieve progress in health and education. The total external debt of the group of least developed countries has more than tripled in 15 years, according to UN data. A recent report commissioned by the late Pope Francis and coordinated by Nobel laureate economist Joseph Stiglitz says 3.3 billion people live in countries that fork out more on interest payments than on health. Critics have singled out US-based bulwarks of the post-World War II international financial system, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, for reform to improve their representation of the Global South. Painstaking talks in New York in June produced a common declaration to be adopted in Seville that only went ahead after the United States walked out. The document reaffirms commitment to the UN development goals such as eliminating poverty and hunger, promoting gender equality, reforming tax systems and international financial institutions. The text also calls on development banks to triple their lending capacity, urges lenders to ensure predictable finance for essential social spending and for more cooperation against tax evasion. Coalitions of countries will seek to spearhead initiatives in addition to the so-called "Seville Commitment", which is not legally binding. The document shows the world can tackle the financial challenges standing in the way of achieving the development goals "and that multilateralism can still work", said Chola Milambo, Zambia's permanent representative to the United Nations. But campaigners have criticised the text for lacking ambition and have rung alarm bells about rising global inequality. "Global development is desperately failing because... the interests of a very wealthy few are put over those of everyone else," said Amitabh Behar, executive director of Oxfam International.
Fashion Network
7 hours ago
- Fashion Network
Sandal scandal: Prada credits new design's Indian legacy amid furore
Luxury fashion powerhouse Prada has acknowledged the ancient Indian roots of its new sandal design after the debut of the open-toe footwear sparked a furore among Indian artisans and politicians thousands of miles from the catwalk in Italy. Images from Prada's fashion show in Milan last weekend showed models wearing leather sandals with a braided design that resembled handmade Kolhapuri slippers with designs dating back to the 12th century. A wave of criticism in the media and from lawmakers followed over the Italian brand's lack of public acknowledgement of the Indian sandal design, which is named after a city in the western state of Maharashtra. Lorenzo Bertelli, son of Prada's owners, responded to the sandal scandal in a letter to a trade group on Friday recognising their Indian heritage. "We acknowledge that the sandals... are inspired by traditional Indian handcrafted footwear, with a centuries-old heritage," Bertelli, Prada's head of corporate social responsibility, wrote in the letter to the Maharashtra Chamber of Commerce, seen by Reuters. The sandals are at an early stage of design and it is not certain they will be commercialized, but Prada is open to a "dialogue for meaningful exchange with local Indian artisans" and will arrange follow-up meetings, he wrote. A Prada spokesperson issued a statement acknowledging the sandal's inspiration from India, adding the company has "always celebrated craftsmanship, heritage and design traditions". Prada products are beyond the reach of most Indians. Its men's leather sandals retail for $844 and up, while the Kolhapuri slippers, sold in Indian shops and street markets, start at about $12. India's luxury market is small but growing fast, with rising numbers of rich people buying Louis Vuitton bags, Lamborghini cars, luxury homes and watches. Conversely, Indian culture and crafts are increasingly finding their way into global brand designs. High-end jeweller Bulgari offers a $16,000 Mangalsutra necklace inspired by a chain traditionally worn by married women. Bertelli's homage to Indian design was sent in a response to a complaint from the head of the trade group that represents 3,000 Kolhapuri sandal artisans, as the online uproar gathered momentum. "From the dusty lanes of Kolhapur to the glitzy runways of Milan... will the world finally give credit where it's due?" India's DNA News posted on X. Sambhaji Chhatrapati from the Kolhapur Royal family told Reuters by phone he was upset that craftsmen had not been acknowledged for the "history and heritage of 150 years." Kolhapur-based businessman Dileep More, however, said images of the Prada sandal were bringing cheer to some artisans as they show their traditional product going global. "They are happy that someone is recognising their work," he said.
