Our story
The creation of our eyewear manufacturing workshop in France is the result of an unprecedented meeting between Pierre MAICHE and Frédéric BEAUSOLEIL.
The association of a craftsman and a creative.
Son of an optician, Pierre specialized in optics from his adolescence. He will receive from his father the passion and a unique and artisanal know-how in the manufacture of glasses. Passionate about optics, Frédéric wants to develop his own creative brand, which will bear his name, Frédéric BEAUSOLEIL.
In 1990, Pierre and Frédéric joined forces to create their manufacturing workshop. The first BEAUSOLEIL collections will allow the workshop to run and train the first employees, still present 28 years later. The workshop will be bases in Nantes, and not in the Jura, like the majority of French eyewear manufacturers, which makes MB Production the only French eyewear manufacturer settled in the Ouest.
In a few months, great creators called upon the French company to manufacture in France their collections of sunglasses and optical glasses in cellulose acetate. This is how the famous New York designer Robert Marc has been manufacturing in Nantes, at MB Production since 1990, his acetate collections, some of which are worn by numerous personalities.
For almost 30 years, thanks to its unique know-how, the recognized quality of its frames, but also to its loyalty to all of its partners, MB Production has been able to cope with and resist the relocation and closure of many French eyewear manufacturers.
We are proud to have been able to prove that it is possible to manufacture in France, while being creative and competitive, in a global market which is always more so. Producing your eyewear collections at MB Production means making the choice to support unique French know-how , to create added value locally, and to control your supply chain in France.
Come and meet a french manufacturer of glasses, based in Nantes as part of the historic Chantiers de l'Esclain.
Your contacts
The place
The worksites of L'Esclain.
After 20 years spent in an industrial area between Nantes and Saint-Nazaire, we have based our production workshop in the heart of a historic site, on the banks of the Loire, in the heart of Nantes: Les chantiers de l'Esclain.
Shipyard created in 1841 by the Dubigeon family, The shipyard of L'Esclain is part of the industrial heritage of Nantes. Dedicated at the time to the construction of steamships and wooden and iron constructions.
It is notably on this site that the famous Bélem was built in 1896, a sailboat still sailing today, and emblem of the city of Nantes. The yard will also build torpedo boats for the French Navy.
After the war, in the 1950s, the yard flourished, receiving numerous orders, notably from fishing vessels, in order to rebuild the fleet. The yard will also build ferries.
The production of ships on the Chantiers Dubigeon site will end in 1986. It will then be transferred entirely to Saint-Nazaire, on what is now called the Chantiers de l'Atlantique.
In 1991, the shipyards of L'Esclain will resume activity to become again a shipyard, specializing in particular in the craning of boats, the fairing and maintenance of pleasure boats, barges, or other professional vessels of inland waterways.
It is on this site steeped in history that we decided to set up our activity of manufacturing glasses, mixture of craftsmanship and advanced industry, like shipbuilding.
Today, the site is modernized and transformed, respecting its cultural and industrial heritage. Since the end of 2019, the Chantiers de l'Esclain have been hosting the Little Atlantique Brewery, a beer brewery and Pub with a team committed and passionate about beer production, and eager to bring the place steeped in history to the general public. in which they are located.
We would be delighted to show you around our workshop.