Louis Vuitton Pivots Its French Workshops To Produce Medical Gowns And Face Masks
The rapid spread of COVID-19 has left hospitals and healthcare workers around the world scrambling for personal protective equipment, a paucity that severely endangers the lives of those on the front line. Wherefore Louis Vuitton has reopened and repurposed its ready-to-wear atelier in Paris to produce medical gowns for staff across six public hospitals in the French capital.
The enterprise is being led by 20 volunteers, who are working to create thousands of gowns in AP-HP (short for Assistance Publique – Hôpitaux de Paris) approved fabrics and patterns. While all the gowns are currently cut manually in the Pont Neuf atelier, as of this week more Louis Vuitton pattern cutters will begin working from home to allow for an increased amount of PPE to be made in a shorter amount of time.
“We are proud to be able to help healthcare professionals at our level and put our know-how at the disposal of the Hôpitaux de Paris to create gowns for medical staff. I would like to thank the artisans of our atelier who voluntarily participate in this civic act and who have been bravely applying themselves… to equip healthcare workers in hospitals,” said Chairman and CEO of Louis Vuitton Michael Burke.
Additionally, the luxury house has also pivoted 12 out of 16 of its leather goods workshops in France to assist with the huge demand for face masks in the country. Three hundred artisans have been mobilised at the workshops in Marsaz and Saint-Donat, Saint-Pourçain, Ducey, and Saint-Florence, and Louis Vuitton plans to donate most of the masks to retirement homes and keep the rest for internal use. The non-surgical masks have been approved of by the different governing bodies, and are created in collaboration with Mode Grand Ouest, a regional network of the textile industry.
But worry not, the safety of returning staff is a top priority for the maison, and strict hygiene and social distancing measures have been implemented in each workshop. Louis Vuitton has developed a safety instruction manual, and there are nurses on site to teach employees how to wash their hands properly and wear their masks correctly.
These initiatives follow earlier efforts by the brand’s parent company LVMH in the fight against COVID-19, including the conversion of its perfume factories to make hand sanitiser for French healthcare authorities, a donation of 40 million medical-grade masks and 261 ventilators to hospitals in its homeland, and a donation of $2.3 million to The Red Cross Society of China.
