This Carcassonnais has dusted off this forgotten centuries-old house to make it the most coveted bag brand internationally. Carla Bruni, Rihanna: all the celebrities have it on their arm.
Eclipsed by fashionistas with atypical style and/or trendy clothing that floods public spaces, the world of fashion is also full of stories of glory that are just waiting to be passed on. So, on the entrepreneurship side, there is no shortage of success stories in industry, as instructive as La Fontaine’s fables. Among them, that of a man who went from a brand of children’s school bags sold in supermarkets to ultra-confidential luxury bags worth several thousand euros each. During his career, he has won over all generations, all social classes, and his products have found their way both on the backs of brats and on the arms of the ultra-rich of this world. Today, he is the 156th richest person in France with nearly 900 million euros (Challenges). However, we talk about it much less than our colleagues Bernard Arnault or even François Henri Pinault. His name? Jean-Michel Signoles. No magazine front pages or television interviews; just a discreet man, far from the spotlight, whose career commands respect.
In 1967, when he was only 17 years old, the entrepreneur launched, in Carcassonne, the brand that all little girls have one day worn to show off in the playground: Chipie. On wheeled satchels, backpacks, pencil cases or pens, this same cute little dog proudly sits with his red scarf around his neck. A brand which is based initially on second-hand clothes and jeans and which, through successive licenses, will then develop on all types of products (from household linen to stationery). It will end up worth 500 million francs in 1999 and 40 million euros in 2000.
In 1999, with this success and while his brand was at the top, he made the strategic choice to resell it to the ready-to-wear group. Zannier (became Kidiliz) to focus on the recent acquisition of a heavyweight in luxury leather goods: Goyard. Still ultra-confidential, the brand only had one Parisian store with two employees at the time Jean-Michel Signoles acquired it. Today it has nearly 36 around the world, from Biarritz to Hong Kong.
Under the leadership of the southerner, the house Goyard returns to the heart of trends. After half a century of suspense, he resurrected the Goyardine in 1998; this iconic canvas which adorns each of the brand’s bags. The “Saint Louis”, its ultra-identifiable tote bag with this all-over pattern on coated canvas, as well as other bag models, are now worn by major world stars such as Bella Hadid, Carla Bruni and Rihanna.
Passionate about the famous trunk maker for years, it is rumored that he has been collecting models (nearly 700 to his name) since he spotted a pretty travel trunk at a second-hand dealer in 1974. His acquisition is therefore far from being the result of opportunism, but much more of a passion for the product and for the brand.
A great sense of business which will also allow the formerly forgotten trunk maker to be nicknamed the “little Hermes”. Today, while Goyard is at the height of its glory, we no longer hear about the schoolbag brand at all. Just coincidence? Certainly not. The adorable little dog will probably have missed his business aura.
