Story of Atelier TUFFERY

1875

French jeans pioneer Célestin Tuffery is born.

Atelier TUFFERY 1875 - Birth of Célestin Tuffery - Atelier TUFFERY

1892

At the age of just 17, Célestin Tuffery creates workwear, dyed with indigo, opening the Tuffery clothing workshop in Florac, in the heart of the Cévennes mountains.
His first trousers earn a reputation for being particularly functional and robust, and they give birth to jeans.

1892 - Opening of the Tuffery confectionery workshop in Florac - Atelier TUFFERY Workwear, dyed with indigo - Atelier TUFFERY

1920

Birth of Jean-Alphonse Tuffery, known as Alphonse, son of Célestin.
He discovers more about the job of tailor-clothier by watching his father wielding his large cutting scissors amid rolls of toile de Nîmes.

History of a french jean - Atelier TUFFERY 1920 - Birth of Jean-Alphonse Tuffery - Atelier TUFFERY

1938

During his apprenticeship in Nîmes, Jean-Alphonse quickly realises the great potential of the famous fabric, which will become known as denim.
Atelier Tuffery is a very early adopter of this fabric for its work trousers, making the family firm the oldest jeans manufacturer in France.
The small workshop in Florac gains a national reputation and grows, democratising the wearing of jeans.

History of a made in France jean - Atelier TUFFERY The oldest manufacture of jeans in France - Atelier TUFFERY

1947-1956

Birth of the third generation of the Tuffery family: Marie-Claude, Jean-Jacques, Jean-Pierre and Norbert.
Each in turn grows up ready for the workshop, handling the large scissors and reels of thread from a young age.

Our history - Atelier TUFFERY Jean-Jacques, Jean-Pierre and Norbert Tuffery - Atelier TUFFERY

1960

Workwear becomes a symbol of freedom, and then a fashion item.
Everyone wants jeans and Atelier Tuffery employs up to 40 clothiers to produce 500 jeans per day.
It is time for the three Tuffery brothers to take over the family firm and transform it into a brand. Atelier Tuffery becomes Tuff’s for a few decades in order to compete with the giant American jeans manufacturers.
Tuff’s also becomes an important partner of the major French denim brands.

Atelier Tuffery employs up to 40 seamstresses to produce 500 jeans a day - Atelier TUFFERY Workwear becomes a symbol of freedom - Atelier TUFFERY

1979

France’s textile industry enters a period of historic decline. At this time, France opens up to the rest of the world, with foreign manufacturers transforming production and French production being relocated overseas. Tuff’s continues to produce jeans but is entering a period where the emphasis on quality becomes more important than the volume of orders.

Transmission of Tuffery quality - Atelier TUFFERY Transmission of Tuffery quality - Atelier TUFFERY

1982

The three Tuffery brothers continue their development, opening a shop where they sell Tuff’s jeans alongside an expanded offer, comprising clothing and accessory brands suitable for visitors to the Cévennes.
A limited Cévennes production is maintained in order to preserve their savoir-faire, their passion for denim and to satisfy the demands of generations of loyal customers.

The passion of denim - Atelier TUFFERY the oldest masters of denim in France - Atelier TUFFERY

1982-2003

The three enthusiasts become the last and only manufacturers of French jeans. They are the oldest master-tailors of denim trousers in France and transform their production into an intimate tailoring operation, for a savvy clientele keen on benefitting from their unmatched craftsmanship.

the last and only French jeans manufacturers - Atelier TUFFERY A unequaled savoir-faire - Atelier TUFFERY

2004-2014

Made in France is back in fashion and little by little we see the revival of France’s artisanal heritage. The issues of product traceability and responsible consumption are growing. Julien Tuffery, the fourth generation of the master-tailor family, is sensitive to these issues and in turn is also passionate about the savoir-faire displayed in the work of his father and uncles.

The made in France - Atelier TUFFERY Julien Tuffery and his wife Myriam take over the family manufacturing - Atelier TUFFERY

2014

Julien Tuffery and his wife Myriam decide to take over the family firm and to highlight this treasure of French industry and craftsmanship.
They return Tuff’s to its historical name, Atelier Tuffery, and focus on the source of this legacy.

A treasure of the French industry and French savoir-faire - Atelier TUFFERY 2014 - Return to the sources of this legacy of the gesture - Atelier TUFFERY

2017

On the 125th anniversary of the family firm, Atelier Tuffery inaugurates a new workshop, a modern setting for a heritage which is still practiced daily by the third generation of the Tuffery family. They pass on decades of savoir-faire to the new team of tailors and clothiers.
Atelier Tuffery produces new designs, with contemporary cuts adapted to the requirements of modern daily lives, while continuing to produce the house’s legendary jeans which are still well-known today.

The new workshop in Cevennes - Atelier TUFFERY The transmission of decades of French savoir-faire - Atelier TUFFERY
To be continued...