Court approves Cédric Meston's Duralex takeover, saving 155 of about 220 jobs
The Orléans commercial court approved the takeover plan on Wednesday, 14 October, under which Cédric Meston's holding Tomé will run the glassworks. The plan keeps 155 of about 220 jobs at the La Chapelle-Saint-Mesmin site and is backed by €16 million in financing.
A court-approved takeover
On Wednesday, 14 October, the commercial court in Orléans validated the takeover plan put forward by Cédric Meston, who will control the glassworks through his holding Tomé. The plan preserves 155 of the roughly 220 jobs at the site in La Chapelle-Saint-Mesmin in the Loiret department, including more than 70% of the permanent contracts. The court ruled two days after the last hearing, and it had two offers before it. Meston told AFP the outcome was settled.
It's won! We are the new owners of Duralex.
Meston, who is 32, co-founded the plant-based meat substitute startup HappyVore and took over Tupperware France in 2025. Duralex had been placed in receivership on 1 June, and the court's decision ends weeks of uncertainty over the company's future.
Financing and management
The financing plan totals €16 million, of which €6 million comes from public support. That support includes loans from the Centre-Val de Loire region and Orléans Métropole, as well as state funding. Billionaire Xavier Niel is associated with the project through his holding NJJ Capital.
- Total financing
- 16 million euros
- Public support
- 6 million euros
Silham El Kasmi becomes the new chief executive of Duralex, after 23 years at Saint-Gobain and then at Saur. Meston said he would adjust output to match future sales and renew the product range to meet changing consumer expectations. Speaking about the responsibility he now carries, he said:
It is a real responsibility; we will do everything to live up to it and make the company sustainable over time.
A rival bid and the company's background
A second offer from the Carlesimo group proposed taking on 129 employees and was not selected. The court made its choice between the two bids.
- Meston plan
- 155 employees
- Carlesimo group offer
- 129 employees
Duralex, founded in 1945 and known for near-unbreakable glassware, had been hit by rising energy prices that forced long stoppages of its kilns. In September 2024 the Orléans court approved a takeover by the workers, who organised themselves as a cooperative. Less than two years later that arrangement collapsed, and the company entered receivership for the fifth time in about twenty years.
- Orléans court approves a workers' cooperative takeover of Duralex
- Duralex enters receivership, its fifth time in about twenty years
- Court validates Cédric Meston's takeover plan, keeping 155 jobs
- Planned conversion of the gas kiln to 100% electric technology
Plans for the plant and reactions
The plan foresees a 100% electric conversion of the gas-fired kiln by 2029, which the holding says would eliminate most of the site's CO2 emissions. Energy consumption currently weighs on the company, close to 20% of its turnover. Meston called decarbonisation "one of the priorities" for the site.
A maintenance technician with 24 years of service at the company said staff would wait to see what follows and did not want false hopes. Industry minister delegate Sébastien Martin welcomed the decision in a message, describing it as a new chapter for the company's industrial know-how.