GILAC

What GILAC does

GILAC is a French industrial SME that designs, manufactures, and markets plastic food containers and handling equipment for professional buyers, operating continuously from its founding in 1941 out of a single site in Marcy-l'Étoile (Auvergne Rhône-Alpes). The portfolio spans 900+ SKUs across 11 categories — food containers (dough, ingredient, gastronorm, airtight, pizza boxes), food crates (perforated, solid, bread, pastry, pallet, folding, HACCP), barrels and containers, insulated containers, rolling dollies, dustbins, lids, handling and storage equipment, small equipment, and hygiene products — manufactured from HDPE, biobased HDPE, recycled HDPE, LDPE, and polypropylene, with 400+ proprietary molds enabling in-house color and branding customization on the same production line.

The product set is built for intensive professional use in HACCP-regulated food environments, with stackable and nestable geometries, gastronorm (GN) and 600x400 format compliance, and certified food-contact safety. The company is ISO 9001 version 2015 certified, holds the FrenchFab and Origin'Ain labels, and maintains its offering deliberately stable year over year to avoid forcing customers to renew installed workflows — a deliberate switching-cost design.

GILAC monetizes through direct B2B unit sales on its own e-commerce storefront (gilac.com) with no minimum order and free delivery above €200, alongside a formalized distributor channel (espace-distributeur.gilac.com) and direct delivery to larger European accounts. Customer mix is long-tail SMB: artisan bakeries, pizzerias, caterers, butchers, dairies, fishmongers, food processors, wineries, farmers, and institutional kitchens, with a French concentration and limited but explicit European reach. Revenue, headcount, and ownership structure are not publicly disclosed beyond an SAS legal form with €1,150,001 registered capital.

Name

GILAC

Legal name

GILAC

Website

https://gilac.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1941

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

GILAC is a French plastic food container manufacturer, founded in 1941 and based in Marcy-l'Étoile, selling 900+ SKUs of HACCP-compliant containers, crates, and handling equipment to professional buyers across bakeries, pizzerias, caterers, butchers, dairies, and food processors in France and Europe.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Food Service Containers and Crates

NAICS

All Other Plastics Product Manufacturing (326199), Plastics Bag and Pouch Manufacturing (326111)

SIC

Plastics Products, Nec (3089), Miscellaneous Plastics Products (3080)

akta.pro primary industry

Rigid Food Containers (Cups, Trays, Clamshells) (IMALAAAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Primary Food Packaging (Direct Contact) (IMALAHAA), Foodservice & Single-Use Plastic Packaging (Cups, Lids, Cutlery) Manufacturing (IMANAEAI), Ready Meals & Prepared Foods Packaging (IMALAHAL), Cold Prepared Foods & Meal Components (Sides, Proteins, Family Meals) (CRAHAKAC)

Keywords

• Plastic food containers
• Food crates manufacturing
• Professional kitchen equipment
• HACCP compliant containers
• Food service containers

Headquarters

HQ city

Marcy-l'etoile

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Product Sales: Direct B2B sales of plastic food containers, crates, and equipment to food industry professionals through e-commerce and distributor network. Products sold at wholesale prices with volume discounts available. No minimum order requirements.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

GILAC designs, manufactures, and markets plastic food containers, crates, and handling equipment for food industry professionals. The French company produces over 900 product references in materials such as HDPE, recycled HDPE, biobased HDPE, LDPE, and polypropylene, with HACCP-compliant food-grade certifications. Its portfolio spans food containers (dough, gastronorm, airtight, pizza boxes), food crates, barrels, insulated containers, rolling dollies, dustbins, lids, and small equipment, complemented by an in-house product customization service.

Product overview

GILAC is a French manufacturer of plastic food containers and equipment since 1941, offering over 900 product references across multiple categories. The product portfolio includes Food Containers (dough containers, gastronorm containers, airtight containers, reusable pizza boxes), Food Crates (perforated, solid, folding, stackable/nestable, cook-chill crates), Barrels & Containers, Insulated Containers, Rolling Dollies, Dustbins, Lids, Handling & Storage equipment, Small Equipment, and Hygiene Products. All products are manufactured in France (Auvergne Rhône Alpes) and designed for intensive professional use in food service, catering, bakery, pastry, pizzeria, butcher, dairy, fishmongering, and food processing industries. The company also offers product customization services.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Food Containers Plastic food containers for professional use, including dough containers, ingredient containers, flat trays, reinforced containers, gastronorm containers, airtight containers, insulated containers, and reusable pizza boxes. Designed for food storage, preparation, transport, and fermentation in commercial kitchens, bakeries, and pizzerias.
• Food Crates Food crates including perforated crates, solid crates, bread containers, pastry crates, glass transport crates, cook-chill crates, pallet containers, stackable/nestable crates, folding crates, and HACCP-compliant crates. Used for storage and transport of food products.
• Barrels & Containers Barrels, containers, basins, buckets, tubs, jerrycans, and carboys for food storage, preparation, transport, and fermentation. Available with accessories such as lids, valves, taps, and marker pens.
• Insulated Containers Insulated containers for temperature-controlled food transport, available in GN1/1 and 600x400 formats with capacities from 53L to 126L, in front-loading and top-opening configurations.
• Rolling Dollies Rolling dollies and platforms for moving food containers and crates, including 4-wheel, 5-wheel, and 6-wheel configurations with removable pulling bars for cold room and handling applications.
• Dustbins Dustbins and waste containers including pedal containers, pedal dustbins, round dustbins, pole bag holders, selective sorting containers, and waste paper baskets for professional food environments.
• Lids Lids for various container types including dough container lids, ingredient lids, flat tray lids, reinforced container lids, gastronorm container lids, crate lids, tub lids, basin lids, bucket lids, and dustbin lids.
• Handling & Storage Equipment Handling and storage equipment including duckboards, shelving units, pallets, racking trolleys, trolleys, and egg trays for professional food service environments.
• Small Equipment Small equipment for food service including thermometers and probes, scrapers, scoops, brooms, hand brushes, proofing baskets, reusable food service ware, trays, chopping boards, preparation bowls, pitchers, and sauce squeeze bottles.
• Hygiene Products
• Product Customization Service Customization service that personalizes GILAC containers and crates with the customer's own colors and branding, leveraging the company's 400+ proprietary molds and registered designs, integrated into the French manufacturing production line.

Quantifiable outcome

• Products maintained year after year to avoid customers needing to renew installations

Named customers5 records

Segments10 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Regional players

• Bourgeat: French foodservice equipment manufacturer of kitchenware and storage products for professional kitchens. Similar customer base and product overlap, focused primarily on the French market.

Broad incumbents

• Cambro Manufacturing: US-based global manufacturer of foodservice plastic containers, food boxes, and crates for professional kitchens. Directly comparable in product category (rigid food containers, GN pans, storage crates) and target buyer (foodservice professionals), but operates at significantly larger scale and global reach.
• Carlisle FoodService Products: Major US foodservice equipment and supplies manufacturer with strong plastic container, food storage and catering equipment portfolio. Overlap with GILAC in rigid plastic foodservice containers, storage and transport equipment.
• Rubbermaid Commercial Products: US-based large foodservice and commercial cleaning products manufacturer offering food storage containers, bins, and waste management products. Broader portfolio than GILAC but overlaps in plastic food storage containers.

Direct peers

• Schoeller Allibert: European leader in reusable plastic packaging, containers, crates and pallets for food, retail and industrial supply chains. Direct comparable in reusable rigid plastic food containers/ crates for B2B markets and food logistics.
• Update International: US foodservice equipment manufacturer specializing in kitchen tools, smallwares and plastic storage products for professional kitchens and caterers. Similar product category and SMB foodservice customer base.
• Craemer Group: German manufacturer of plastic pallets, containers and bins for food, logistics and retail industries. Overlaps with GILAC in food-grade rigid plastic containers and crates for professional use.
• Matfer Bourgeat: French professional kitchen equipment manufacturer offering cookware, pastry utensils, and plastic containers for chefs and caterers. Direct geographic and product overlap with GILAC, serving similar French foodservice and bakery customers.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/gilac
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/gilac
• Instagraminstagram.com/gilac

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

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 GILAC