Arpin

The Arpin mill's roots go back to 1771, when its first workshop was set up at Montvalezan, in the Savoie region. In 1817, brothers Alexis and Jean-Baptiste Arpin transferred the operation to Séez-Saint-Bernard, on the edge of the Versoyen stream, at a time when Savoie was not yet part of France. The mill became known for a specific woolen cloth called "Drap de Bonneval," named after Pierre Blanc, a mountain guide and peddler from Bonneval-sur-Arc in the twentieth century who traded in the fabric. Today Arpin is recognized as a French "Entreprise du Patrimoine Vivant" (Living Heritage Enterprise) and describes itself as the last mill in France still producing fabric starting from raw fleece rather than pre-processed wool, using historic machinery, roughly two-thirds of which is classified as a monument historique. The company sources its wool exclusively from within Savoie, working with around thirty breeders across the Maurienne and Tarentaise valleys, using sheep breeds including Blanche du Massif Central, Île-de-France, Lacaune and Préalpes. Products made from the mill's wool include blankets, coats, bags and throws, sold both from Séez and through its own online shop.