Founder and president of ‘Le Slip Francais’ underwear model, Guillaume Gibault poses within the Bonne Nouvelle textile manufacturing facility in Aubervilliers, surburb of Paris, on February 12, 2025.
Thomas Samson | Afp | Getty Pictures
French underwear model Le Slip Français made its inventory market debut in Paris on Tuesday, betting that customers pays for regionally made clothes amid competitors from ultra-cheap Chinese language fast-fashion giants like Shein and Temu.
The attire firm, based in 2011 by entrepreneur Guillaume Gibault to advertise textiles made in France, has since expanded past males’s underwear to incorporate girls’s undergarments, T-shirts, socks, swimwear, and different clothes. It would IPO on the Euronext Development Paris change on Tuesday morning
The IPO comes after what Gibault described as a robust yr for the enterprise. Le Slip Français generated 21 million euros ($24.6 million) in income in 2025, alongside earnings earlier than curiosity, taxes, depreciation, and amortization of two.1 million euros and web revenue of 700,000 euros, which he stated gave the corporate confidence to pursue a public itemizing.
Le Slip Français had a combined begin on the day of its debut, with shares briefly falling under their IPO worth of 14.80 euros, earlier than final buying and selling at 15 euros.
Taking up Shein and Temu
The French model is getting into the public market as fast-fashion giants proceed to place stress on attire manufacturers with ultra-low costs.
Gibault acknowledged that competing in opposition to platforms equivalent to Shein and Temu is difficult, however argued that world commerce uncertainty is encouraging manufacturers to maneuver textile manufacturing nearer to house.
Primarily based on the IPO worth of 14.80 euros, the corporate was concentrating on a market capitalization of round 19 million euros forward of its IPO. In the meantime, Shein is predicted to doubtlessly IPO in September or October, concentrating on a valuation of $40 to $50 billion, in accordance with Reuters.
“Everyone knows that in each disaster there’s alternative,” he stated. “There may be momentum now for relocating textiles in France.”
Automation has helped scale back manufacturing prices, permitting the corporate to chop the retail worth of its underwear from round 40 euros to roughly 20 euros whereas sustaining profitability, in accordance with Gibault.
Le Slip Français additionally plans to increase past its personal client model by manufacturing clothes for different firms looking for French manufacturing, a method it describes as “Made in France as a service.”
The corporate goals to double income by 2030 via a mix of rising market share in males’s underwear and increasing its manufacturing enterprise.
Gibault stated the corporate presently holds round 4% of France’s males’s underwear market regardless of being acknowledged by roughly 60% of the French inhabitants, leaving room for progress. He added that the corporate hopes to decrease costs additional over time via higher manufacturing effectivity.
Requested in regards to the challenges of constructing a enterprise in France, Gibault stated entrepreneurship has “at all times been tremendous robust,” however argued that enterprise leaders should proceed taking dangers whatever the political surroundings.
“We do not count on any assist. We simply work,” he stated, including that steady guidelines matter greater than authorities subsidies. “The time of politics isn’t the time of entrepreneurship.”
As a substitute, he stated, the corporate’s future depends upon clients who imagine native manufacturing can compete on each high quality and worth — a perception Le Slip Français is now asking public traders to again as properly.
