With Loulenn, Euriel Morvézen makes duvets greener
From the taste of travel…
Formerly working in an international freight forwarding company, I lived in New Caledonia, then in Australia where I made a discovery that changed my career: the wool duvet. Not the chunky, heavy blanket you find in old family homes, but a light, soft comforter very popular with Australians, the world’s largest wool producers. I adopted her and brought her back when I returned to France. But when I wanted to buy a new one, I realized that there was not much pretty on the national market. This duvet being both light and voluminous, its importation is revealed and its production is most often local.
… to that of undertaking usefully
I was looking to give meaning to my professional life by planning an initiative that would have a positive impact on society. I thought back to the wool duvet, a sustainable and responsible alternative to synthetic comforters, chosen by 75% of French people, and to duck and goose duvet duvets whose feathers, depending on the country, are not always defined with respect for animals. Little by little the idea germinated and at the time of confinement, in March 2020, I accompanied myself, accompanied by Les Premieres, a six-month coaching program to set up his business. Nine months later, the pre-order campaign for Loulenn (“lenn” meaning woolen blanket in Breton) was created on Ulule. Since then, turnover has reached 80,000 euros with 300 quilts sold in the first year.
A little used fiber
France harvests 15,000 tons of wool each year, in the Alps, the Massif Central, the Pyrenees, the Tarn and the Béarn – 80% is exported to Asia to be transformed into clothing… which then returns to Europe. Of the remaining 20%, only 4% are exploited, the rest is thrown away because we don’t know what to do with it. I wanted to promote this French production, to make people love this fiber and to reinvent the wool duvet by favoring local know-how. Wool is thermoregulatory, insulates from heat and cold, absorbs humidity and odors and protects allergy sufferers with its anti-mite properties. Finally, the fibre, which is recyclable, is in abundance since the sheep must be sheared every year for their well-being. So many properties that explain why Australians prefer wool duvets.
A circuit court
The idea was for everything to be made in France, apart from the organic cotton produced in Asia. All my suppliers were met at the “Made in France Première Vision” trade show. The wool comes from the Alps, the reusable duffel bag from Alsace, the cardboard from Occitanie, the labels and the pretty blue or red bias from Auvergne, then everything is packaged in the Vaucluse before being shipped from Toulouse where we are. installed. In addition to the two models of duvets and a children’s version, last year I launched cushions with bias cuts. To also develop the social aspect, these are made by disabled workers in collaboration with an Esat (Establishment and service of assistance through work) in Occitanie. Finally, I am a member of the 1% For The Planet association, which commits me to donate this percentage of my turnover to associations for the preservation of the environment. Next year, I would like to become a company with a mission to formalize my commitments.