L’histoire
L’histoire des Guille, c’est une famille attachée à sa région et son village : Briatexte situé au cœur du Sud-Ouest.En 1864, Narcisse Guille commerçait des draps, en 1895 Frédéric se lançait dans la fabrication de tissus. En 1930 Olivier se spécialisait dans la chaussette en achetant les premiers métiers motorisés. En effet, avant la guerre, il commanda des métiers à tricoter en Angleterre et à sa grande surprise, les métiers ont un tout petit diamètre, et permettent donc de faire des chaussettes pour bébés.
Story
The story of Collégien is that of a family, a village and a priceless know-how.The Guilles have run their hosiery factory for over a century, at Briatexte, a small village in the southwest of France. In 1947, Robert created the Collégien brand and, with his brother Alain, invented the injection of a soft rubber sole in a sock: the slipper-sock was born! In 2007, Olivier Guille, today’s CEO and the founder’s great-grandchild, restyled this iconic item and made it a worldwide beloved accessory, thank to its design, vivid colours and comfort.
COLLEGIEN: A STRONG BRAND, THE BACKBONE OF OUR COMPANY
From its creation in 1947 to the 90s, Collégien was a much beloved brand in France. Collégien collections of clothes, socks and tights were carried in the best Department Stores in Paris and worldwide, advertisements were to be seen on all Parisian buses and the famous singer Sheila promoted the brand too.In 2007, Olivier Guille, today’s CEO and the founder’s great-grandchild, decided to relaunch the brand by reinterpreting the company archives, particularly the iconic slipper-socks.