JLF Group

What JLF Group does

Groupe JLF is a privately-held French industrial SME (SAS) headquartered in Lyon, with origins dating to 1978 and a corporate history spanning four decades of consolidation in personal protective equipment and professional footwear. The Group designs, formulates, and manufactures four complementary product categories: protective gloves for industrial workplaces (thermal, cut-resistant, handling); footwear accessories including technical insoles, work socks, and laces; safety and work footwear certified to EN ISO 20345/20347; and wax-based care products for leather, wood, and equestrian surfaces. The company operates three production sites — Villebois-Lavalette (Charente, France) for insoles and PPE, Saint-Bonnet-le-Château (Loire, France) for wax-based care products via subsidiary MFPE, and Bangkok (Thailand) for technical insoles, knitted items, and safety footwear — supported by an R&D office in Valence (Drôme). Stated annual production capacity reaches approximately 3.3 million pairs of insoles/socks, 2 million pairs of gloves, 300,000 pairs of Nordways safety footwear, and 700 tonnes of wax-based care products.

The Group's technology stack centers on proprietary processes and registered trademarks: hot pouring (coulage à chaud) for wax products claimed to be unique in Europe, EXTRAGRIP® and HEXAGRIP® anti-slip sole technologies, Vibracut® shock absorption in insoles (since 2005), and a patented cellular honeycomb memory foam material for the Lady's Secret brand. The Group holds ISO 9001 certification (MFPE), CE marking under EU Regulation 2016/425 for protective gloves, and maintains active membership in AFNOR and SYNAMAP standards committees, providing early visibility into evolving French and European PPE regulations.

JLF Group operates a hybrid business model combining proprietary brand sales with white-label/contract manufacturing. Three proprietary brands address distinct segments: JLF Pro® (B2B professional PPE for industrial sectors), Nordways® (B2B professional footwear for HoReCa, food processing, and healthcare, endorsed by 250+ French chefs and 20+ luxury hotels), and Lady's Secret (B2C women's footwear accessories). Revenue is generated through direct sales teams, distributor and reseller networks, brand-specific websites, and structured white-label manufacturing for brands and industrial distributors under long-term partnership contracts. Pricing is quote-based and not publicly disclosed. The customer base spans industrial professionals, hospitality establishments, healthcare providers, mass retail and specialist sports retail customers, and brand owners seeking private-label ranges. Operating geographies include France (primary market), Thailand (manufacturing and Asia commercial hub), and — as of 2025 — Southeast Asia, the Middle East, and the United States following Nordways international expansion. The Group is family-owned with a generational leadership transfer completed in 2014 and no disclosed external institutional investment.

Name

JLF Group

Legal name

GROUPE JLF

Website

https://groupe-jlf.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1978

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Groupe JLF is a French industrial SME designing and manufacturing personal protective equipment (gloves, insoles, socks), safety footwear, and wax-based care products, serving industrial, hospitality, healthcare, and consumer markets through proprietary brands (JLF Pro, Nordways, Lady's Secret) and white-label contract manufacturing.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Personal Protective Equipment Manufacturing

NAICS

Footwear Manufacturing (3162), Apparel Manufacturing (315), Footwear Merchant Wholesalers (424340)

SIC

Footwear, (No Rubber) (3140), Men's & Boys' Furnishgs, Work Clothg, & Allied Garments (2320)

akta.pro primary industry

Footwear Manufacturing (OEM/ODM & Private Label) (CRAAACAJ)

akta.pro secondary industries

Apparel OEM/ODM & Private Label Manufacturing (CRAAAAAK), Work, Safety & Occupational Footwear Retail (CRAAADAD), Workwear, Uniforms & Corporate Apparel Wholesale (CRAOADAF)

Keywords

• Personal protective equipment
• Safety footwear manufacturing
• Protective gloves manufacturer
• Footwear accessories insoles
• Leather care products

Headquarters

HQ city

Lyon

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices6 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Proprietary Brand Product Sales: Sale of own branded products through three proprietary brands: JLF Pro (PPE gloves, insoles, socks), Nordways (professional safety footwear for hospitality and light industry), and Lady's Secret (women's footwear accessories). Products are sold through distributors, retailers, and direct B2B channels.
2. White Label / Private Label PPE Manufacturing: Contract manufacturing of custom PPE products (gloves, insoles, socks) under customer brand names. The Group provides full-service support from needs analysis and co-development through to industrialization, quality control, regulatory compliance, and logistics. Revenue is generated per production run under long-term brand-distributor partnerships.
3. Contract Manufacturing of Care Products (MFPE): Formulation, manufacturing, and packaging of custom maintenance/cleaning products (waxes, balms, polishes, oils) for leather, wood, and sensitive surfaces under customer brand names. ISO 9001-certified industrial subcontractor serving mass retail and specialist distributors. Revenue is generated per production batch under partnership contracts.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

JLF Group is a French industrial manufacturer that designs and produces personal protective equipment (protective gloves, technical insoles, work socks), professional safety footwear for hospitality and light industry, women's footwear comfort accessories, and wax-based care products for leather, wood, and sensitive surfaces. The group sells through proprietary brands (JLF Pro, Nordways, Lady's Secret) via distributors and direct channels, and operates white-label/contract manufacturing services (including MFPE) for brands and industrial distributors seeking custom ranges.

Product overview

JLF Group is a French industrial SME offering a complementary portfolio of four core product categories: protective gloves for hand safety, footwear accessories (insoles, socks, laces) for foot comfort and protection, safety footwear for hospitality and industrial sectors, and wax-based care products for leather and wood. The company markets these through three proprietary brands—JLF Pro (professional PPE), Nordways (professional footwear), and Lady's Secret (women's footwear accessories)—while also providing private label/contract manufacturing services for brands and distributors seeking to develop their own product ranges under white label arrangements.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• JLF Pro: French brand for professional foot and hand protection, offering technical gloves, socks, and insoles designed for professional requirements (chemicals, metallurgy, waste management, energy, food processing, local authorities).
• Nordways
• Lady's Secret

Products and services

• Protective Gloves Professional protective gloves for thermal protection, handling/assembly, and cut-resistant applications, compliant with EU Regulation 2016/425 and CE marking. Designed for industrial professionals in chemicals, metallurgy, waste management, energy, and food processing sectors, with the JLF Pro brand manufacturing more than 2 million pairs of gloves annually.
• Safety Footwear Safety and work shoes including anti-slip clogs, safety sneakers, and safety loafers for hospitality, agri-food, catering, service environments, and light industry, certified to EN ISO 20345 and EN ISO 20347 standards with proprietary EXTRAGRIP® and HEXAGRIP® anti-slip sole technologies. Produced under the Nordways brand with approximately 300,000 pairs manufactured per year.
• Footwear Accessories (Insoles, Socks, Laces) Technical insoles (including ESD safety insoles and Vibracut® shock absorption models), work socks, and laces (including flame-retardant laces to EN 15090 §7.3) designed to protect professionals' feet inside safety footwear, addressing 80% of foot problems caused by improper footwear use and reducing fatigue from prolonged standing.
• Care Products (Waxes, Balms, Polishes) Wax-based care products for leather, wood, equestrian, and sensitive surfaces, including polishes, balms, creams, greases, oils, and waterproofing agents. Formulated and manufactured using unique-in-Europe hot pouring (coulage à chaud) technology ensuring homogeneous textures and batch-to-batch consistency, with MFPE producing approximately 700 tonnes (or 457,000 litres) annually.
• Private Label PPE Manufacturing Turnkey white-label PPE production service for brands and distributors seeking to develop custom ranges of gloves, insoles, and socks. Includes needs analysis, co-development, prototyping, compliance testing, CE marking, batch traceability, and logistics preparation under long-term brand-distributor partnership contracts.
• Contract Manufacturing of Care Products (MFPE) End-to-end contract manufacturing service for wax-based care products covering formulation, sampling, testing, production, packaging, and quality control. Served by 10 production lines and 12 steam reactors across a 2,600 m² facility, with unique hot pouring expertise. ISO 9001-certified and annually audited by mass retail and specialist sports retail customers.

Quantifiable outcome

• 28% of workplace accidents are hand injuries — highlighting the critical importance of protective gloves
• +6 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• MFPE (Manufacture France Produits d'Entretien)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024MFPE, a wax-based care product manufacturer founded in the 19th century and operating under the La Châtelaine brand, was acquired by Groupe JLF in 2024. MFPE brings unique expertise in wax-based product formulation, hot pouring technology, and ISO 9001-certified industrial manufacturing. The entity operates from a 2,600 m² site in Saint-Bonnet-le-Château (Loire) with 21 employees and a production capacity of 700 tonnes per year.
• NordwayscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022Nordways, a company with over 50 years of history specializing in safety footwear for HoReCa, food processing, and healthcare professions, was integrated into Groupe JLF in 2022. The brand consolidates already recognized expertise in workplace foot comfort. Nordways is a leader in EN ISO 20347 standard footwear and is recommended by over 250 French chefs. In 2025, Nordways began international expansion with contracts in Southeast Asia, the Middle East, and the United States.
• GRENIX-MAKALUcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022The business assets of GRENIX-MAKALU, a company specialized in technical sock manufacturing that notably equipped the first expedition of Mount Makalu (Himalayas) in 1955, were acquired by the Group in 2001. This acquisition provided foundational expertise in technical socks that continues to inform JLF Pro's sock product line today.

Scale indicators13 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Delta Plus Group: French-listed PPE manufacturer offering protective gloves, safety footwear, and workwear for industrial and construction professionals. Direct peer to JLF Group given similar product portfolio (gloves + safety shoes), French industrial base, and B2B distribution model.
• Uvex Group: German family-owned manufacturer of safety footwear (uvex safety shoes), protective gloves, and eyewear. Closely comparable to JLF Group in safety footwear R&D (anti-slip, ergonomic), private ownership structure, and integrated manufacturing.
• MAPA Professional (Hutchinson): French manufacturer of protective gloves (industrial, chemical, food handling) owned by TotalEnergies' Hutchinson. Direct competitor to JLF Pro in the European industrial glove market with shared French manufacturing base.
• COFRA: Italian manufacturer of safety footwear and workwear, with EN ISO 20345/20347 certified products. Direct peer to Nordways in the professional safety footwear category, sharing European manufacturing heritage and B2B distribution.
• Ansell: Global leader in protective gloves and workplace safety solutions, with deep exposure to industrial, healthcare, and food processing segments. Direct competitor to JLF Pro's glove business and shares JLF's multi-vertical go-to-market approach.
• Showa Group: Japanese-headquartered manufacturer of single-use and industrial protective gloves with European manufacturing footprint. Comparable to JLF Group in glove product portfolio, vertical integration, and focus on cut/thermal/chemical protection categories.

Emerging players

• Superfeet Worldwide: US-based manufacturer of premium insoles and foot care accessories, with patented foam and shape technologies. Comparable to JLF Pro's insole business and Lady's Secret's comfort accessory line, though primarily B2C/direct-to-consumer focused.
• Sievert Larsen AS: Norwegian specialist in professional safety footwear for hospitality, food processing, and healthcare — directly mirroring Nordways' core verticals and target customers. Smaller emerging peer with comparable niche specialization.

Broad incumbents

• Honeywell Safety Products: Division of Honeywell offering a broad PPE portfolio including safety footwear, gloves, eyewear, and fall protection. Comparable as a broad-incumbent in JLF's categories with global distribution and enterprise procurement contracts, though not a specialist in hospitality footwear.
• 3M Personal Safety Division: Global PPE conglomerate offering protective gloves, safety footwear, hearing protection, and respirators. Broad incumbent comparable to JLF Group in industrial and workplace safety channels, with materially larger scale and brand recognition.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights8 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/groupe-jlf

Compliance6 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Subsidiaries3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about JLF Group