What Alma Mater does

Alma Mater is a French textile printing and manufacturing company founded in 1983, headquartered in Bry-sur-Marne, Île-de-France. The firm designs, prints and assembles customizable textile and lifestyle products — adult and children's aprons and chef hats, t-shirts, sweatshirts, children's bodysuits and bibs, kitchen accessories (towels, oven items, mugs), tote bags, cabas bags, pencil cases, magnets, cushions, insulated bottles and piggy banks — operating an integrated in-house production unit that combines screen printing (carousel up to 8 colors), digital printing, sublimation, embroidery, cutting and sewing. Cotton is woven in the Vosges region and dyed near Lyon before being finished at the Bry-sur-Marne workshop, enabling a 100% Made-in-France supply chain that the company uses as its primary commercial differentiator, reinforced by PETA and OEKO Tex certifications.

Its product and content moat rests on a catalog of more than 7,000 original drawings produced by a curated network of 28 illustrators, allowing customers to select existing designs and add logos, city names, or custom artwork. Customization is the company's core revenue mechanic: minimum orders of 50 pieces apply for adding logos/names to existing designs, and 100 pieces for custom drawings on Alma Mater-supplied supports. Pricing is quote-based and not publicly disclosed.

Alma Mater serves three customer segments: (1) French and international museums and cultural institutions, including flagship partners RMN-Grand Palais and Centre des Monuments Nationaux (covering 200+ national sites), as well as Château de Vaux le Vicomte, the Bayeux Tapestry, Fondation des Beaux Arts, Cité de l'Espace and Cadre Noir; (2) enterprises and souvenir/decoration shops seeking branded or regionally-themed merchandise; and (3) individual consumers purchasing through the almamater.fr e-commerce site. Distribution mixes B2B quote-based enterprise sales, wholesale to retail, and direct-to-consumer e-commerce. The company is organized as a private SARL with €200,000 of share capital and 15 employees, and operates a sister home-decoration brand, Derrière La Porte, following a September 2015 merger.

Name

Alma Mater

Legal name

Alma Mater

Website

https://almamater.fr

Company type

Private

Founded year

1983

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Alma Mater is a French textile printer and manufacturer founded in 1983 that produces customizable aprons, apparel, kitchen textiles, and lifestyle products entirely in-house at its Bry-sur-Marne workshop, serving museums, cultural institutions, souvenir retailers, and individual consumers with a catalog of 7,000+ original illustrations.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Custom Textile Manufacturing

SIC

Apparel & Other Finishd Prods Of Fabrics & Similar Matl (2300), Wholesale-Apparel, Piece Goods & Notions (5130), Coating, Engraving & Allied Services (3470)

akta.pro primary industry

Textiles, Uniforms & Linens Procurement (Student/Staff Uniforms, Towels, Bedding) (EDAEAIAN)

Keywords

• Textile printing
• Custom apparel
• Souvenir merchandise
• Made in France
• Corporate textiles

Headquarters

HQ city

Bry-sur-Marne

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Textile Product Sales: Sale of textile products including aprons, t-shirts, children's clothing, kitchen accessories (towels, oven mitts), mugs, bags, magnets, and other customizable items. Products are sold as one-time purchases with customization options.
2. Customization Services: Personalization services adding customer logos, city names, or custom designs to products. Minimum order quantities apply: 50 pieces for adding logos/names to existing designs, 100 pieces for custom drawings.
3. Broderie Services: High-quality embroidery services for adding elegant finishes to textile articles.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Alma Mater is a French textile printing manufacturer that designs, produces and sells customizable textile products — aprons, t-shirts, sweatshirts, kitchen accessories (towels, mugs), bags, magnets and insulated bottles — printed in-house at its Bry-sur-Marne workshop via screen printing, digital printing, sublimation and embroidery. The company sells standard catalog products through its e-commerce site and offers a "sur-mesure" customization service (logos, city names, custom drawings) with minimum order quantities for B2B clients such as museums, souvenir shops and enterprises, drawing on a catalog of 7,000+ original illustrations created by a network of 28 illustrators.

Product overview

Alma Mater is a French textile printing company founded in 1983, offering a comprehensive portfolio of customizable textile products manufactured entirely in France. The core product lineup consists of adult and children's aprons (Tabliers Adultes, Tabliers Enfants), children's chef hats (Toques Enfants), adult and children's clothing (Vêtements Adultes, Vêtements Enfants), and kitchen accessories (Cuisine). A wide range of accessories includes tote bags, cabas bags, pencil cases, magnets, piggy banks, cushions, and insulated bottles. The company operates its own production unit in Bry-sur-Marne with capabilities in screen printing, digital printing, sublimation, embroidery, and sewing. With over 7,000 original drawings from a network of 28 illustrators, Alma Mater's primary differentiator is its customization service (Personnalisation/Sur-Mesure), allowing businesses, museums, and individuals to add city names, logos, or custom visuals to products. The company is also associated with the brand Derrière La Porte (home decoration) and collaborates with French cultural institutions including RMN, Musée d'Orsay, and national monuments.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Derrière La Porte: Home decoration brand operated alongside Alma Mater following the September 2015 partnership, offering decoration products to complement Alma Mater's textile offerings.

Products and services

• Tabliers Adultes (Adult Aprons) Customizable adult kitchen aprons made from cotton sourced in the Vosges region, dyed in Lyon, and printed/cut/sewn at the Bry-sur-Marne workshop. Available in 12+ colors with original illustrations by French designers.
• Tabliers Enfants (Children's Aprons) Children's kitchen aprons with colorful, imaginative designs aimed at young artists. Made in France from high-quality materials for splash/stain protection and comfort.
• Toques Enfants (Children's Chef Hats) Children's chef hats in vibrant colors matching the aprons collection, made from high-quality materials for durability, daily wear and breathability.
• Vêtements Adultes (Adult Clothing) Adult t-shirts and sweatshirts in sizes S to XXXL (sweatshirts up to XXL), in a wide range of vibrant colors with high-quality printed illustrations.
• Vêtements Enfants (Children's Clothing) Children's t-shirts, bodysuits (0-3, 3-6, 6-12, 12-18 months) and bibs in sizes 2-14 years. Available in blue, lagoon blue, white, cumin, soft pink, fuchsia pink, khaki and grey.
• Cuisine Accessories (Kitchen Accessories) Kitchen accessories including dish towels (torchons), bottle bags, table sets and customizable mugs, all printed in the French workshop.
• Accessoires (Lifestyle Accessories) Wide range of accessories including customizable tote bags with all-over printing, cabas bags, pencil cases, magnets (including a D-Day collection), piggy banks, cushions, and insulated bottles (keeping drinks hot/cold for 10 hours).
• Personnalisation / Sur-Mesure (Customization Service) Customization service offering access to a 7,000+ drawing catalog with the ability to add city names, logos and custom illustrations onto Alma Mater supports. Supports screen printing (few-color designs), digital printing (complex visuals/photos), sublimation and embroidery. Minimum ~50 pieces to add logos/names to existing designs, ~100 pieces for custom drawings on supports.

Quantifiable outcome

• 100% French manufacturing from raw material to finished product
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers9 records

Segments4 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

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core, flagship and minor.

• Derriere La PortecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 September 2015In September 2015, Alma Mater merged with Derriere La Porte, another French company sharing similar values of playful and colorful creations. Both companies maintain collective of French creatives and share the common goal of bringing lightness and joy to everyday life. Together they offer a complete and coherent universe around the home, with decoration from Derriere La Porte and textiles from Alma Mater.
• Réunion des Musées Nationaux (RMN)flagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerRMN-Grand Palais is a partner creating textile products featuring artwork and themes from major French national museums for museum gift shops.
• Musées et Monuments Nationaux de France (CMN)flagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerCMN manages over 200 national monuments, museums, and archeological sites in France. Alma Mater creates customized textile merchandise for these cultural sites.
• Fondation des Beaux ArtscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with the Foundation of Fine Arts for art-themed textile merchandise featuring classic artworks.
• Cité de l'EspacecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with the Space City theme park in Toulouse for space-themed textile products and souvenirs.
• Château de Vaux le VicomtecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration with the Château de Vaux le Vicomte to create heritage-themed textile products featuring historical French castle imagery.
• Tapisserie de BayeuxcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership to create textile merchandise featuring designs based on the famous Bayeux Tapestry, a UNESCO World Heritage site.
• Cadre NoirminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with the Cadre Noir de Saumur equestrian academy for horse-themed textile products featuring classical riding imagery.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Vistaprint: Large custom printing platform offering personalized merchandise, apparel, and signage to SMBs. Comparable to Alma Mater in custom merchandise and printing capabilities for businesses, though at massive scale and with a much broader product portfolio.
• Bensimon: Established French textile and apparel brand with a casual lifestyle aesthetic, French design heritage, and own e-commerce plus wholesale distribution. Comparable to Alma Mater in the French-designed, premium-casual textile category, though broader in product scope.
• Saint James: Heritage French textile manufacturer (famous for Breton striped shirts) producing 100% Made-in-France apparel with vertical integration. Shares Alma Mater's French-made premium positioning and brand heritage, though at significantly larger scale and broader product line.
• Le Slip Français: French-made apparel and underwear brand with strong 'Made in France' positioning and direct-to-consumer e-commerce plus retail distribution. Shares Alma Mater's French manufacturing heritage marketing and DTC channel approach, though in a different product category (basics/underwear).
• Petit Bateau: Iconic French children's and family apparel manufacturer with a comparable Made-in-France heritage and multi-channel distribution (wholesale, own retail, e-commerce). Overlaps with Alma Mater in children's apparel and French-made textile positioning, though at much larger scale.
• Cyrillus: French heritage apparel brand offering family and children's clothing with French design sensibility and multi-channel distribution. Comparable to Alma Mater in family/children's textile category and French brand positioning, though focused on apparel rather than souvenir textiles.
• Printful: Large-scale custom apparel printing and fulfillment platform offering on-demand personalization across multiple printing techniques. Directly comparable to Alma Mater's customization service in technique and target use case (custom textile merchandise), though at very different scale and with no MOQ.
• Bonpoint: Premium French children's apparel and accessories brand with strong Made-in-France heritage and global wholesale/retail presence. Overlaps with Alma Mater's children's textile range and premium French positioning, though Bonpoint operates at luxury price points and much larger scale.

Direct peers

• Derrière La Porte: Sister brand to Alma Mater following the 2015 merger. Operates in adjacent French home decoration and creative textile/goods space, sharing the same illustrator network, 'Made in France' ethos, and direct-to-consumer e-commerce model.
• Atelier de l'Armée: French maker of custom textile accessories and small leather goods, with in-house production and direct-to-consumer e-commerce. Comparable to Alma Mater in offering made-in-France customizable lifestyle products to a similar boutique/cultural consumer.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/almamaterfr

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Subsidiaries1 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 Alma Mater