So, the other day, I was looking in my kitchen at various glassware brands I have been using over the years to bake cakes (not that many!) and roasts etc. And I thought, why not to write a little bit about my favourite "old fashion brand" Duralex? For those of you who grew up in France and went to the French "cantine", you will remember the round logo at the bottom of any glass with the famous brand's name and "made in France" stamp. And if you are part of the weird kiddos of the cantine like me (lol) you may have played "how old are you?" and checked the bottom of your glass once empty to see what number was stamped there too... Never played it? Well, in Lyon, where I grew up, it was quite a normal game ahaha...
Duralex is one of the fleurons of the glassware industry in France. It is a French tempered glass tableware and kitchenware manufacturer located in La Chapelle-Saint-Mesmin in Loiret. No idea where it is? Don't worry, I also had to check a map again to find it. If I tell you Orleans, South of Paris? Click HERE to see it on a proper map :-)
Using a technique developed in the 1930s by Saint-Gobain, molded glass is heated to 600 degrees Celsius, then cooled very quickly, giving it an impact resistance twice superior to normal glass.
The "Picardie" tumbler and the "Gigogne" glass are two of the company's best-known products. The Gigogne glass is in the permanent collection of the Paris Musée des Arts Décoratifs, Paris.
The magazine This Old House called Duralex’s Oven Chef glass baking dishes one of the best new home products of 2014, citing the dishes' ability to withstand wide temperature swings without shattering.
It went almost into administration twice but somehow survived over the years... Can you guess its 2017 turnover at all? Click HERE to read more about details figures! Very impressive, I promise, for a company of 250 employees!
Finally, do you know where is the Duralex name from? It was taken from the Latin motto "Dura Lex Sed Lex" ('The law is tough, but it is the law'). Clever idea I think!
References
Duralex International. RCS Orleans B 505 397 554, societe.com
Duralex : retour "verre" le futur, Vincent Vidal, Home Fashion News, December 2013
John Lichfield, "Duralex – the glass tumbler that would not be broken", The Independent, 27 January 2010.
Kate Watson-Smyth, "The Secret History Of: The Duralex glass range", The Independent, 26 November 2010.
"Gobelet [Gigogne] - Centre de documentation des musées - Les Arts Décoratifs".
"Duralex's OvenChef Named to This Old House Best Products List - Home Furnishings News".
"The TOH Top 100: Best New Home Products 2014". 26 September 2014.
