Near Toulouse, the textile company Tempo Loco creates marinières “made in Blagnac”
For two years, the textile manufacturing workshop in Blagnac suspended its local production to produce masks. The company took over the manufacture of marinières and children’s clothing. She is booming.
It has been more than two years since the Blagnac company Tempo Loco was highlighted at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic. At the initiative of its manager, Andrea Frinquello, the textile company suspended its production of marinières to urgently start producing masks.
“When we became aware of the shortage of masks and the distress of people in contact with the public, we immediately provided them to town halls, pharmacies, gendarmeries and other medical offices, prefecture and CPAM (Primary health insurance fund) , always free of charge, for a total of 12,000 pieces,” the leaders recall. “Then we went up to 22,000, free for residents and public services, and at cost for businesses.”
Production locale
Where is the company today? “We have resumed our usual production. After two reduced seasons, we imagined a new collection for summer 2022 and the results are a little better than the pre-covid period. We have also welcomed interns from the Gabriel-Péri high schools in Toulouse and Léo Ferré in Gourdon, some of whom obtained an average of 19.5 in their BTS. Their strong point was speaking, thanks to their experience here,” continues the sixty-year-old manager.
The following stages offer good prospects: “The essential concern is to perpetuate the workshop, its activity and the sector. I am looking for a buyer to pass the baton. Contacts are established, we have to work on it. The other good news is the ramping up of distribution, thanks to the creation of a structure based in Blagnac, by one of my salespeople,” rejoices the experienced entrepreneur. A new entity imagined and defined as follows by Iwona Clevenot: “A “Made in Blagnac” concept store, which offers products around children, under the motto “Cap au large” and the name “id-enfantine”. We are going to have the collection evaluated from the summer period alone to the half-season and winter”, promises this resident of Andromeda, evoking her first steps: “We had a stand on the open-air market and had great success”.