PROFILES

Florent Grellet received his first design prize at the Lycée des Métiers de l’Optique in the Jura, the cradle of French eyewear. Having worked as an optician for a large group for several years, he arrived on the Côte d’Azur in 2012 and set up his workshop in Le Cannet, labelled ‘Ville et Métiers d’Art’. He designed custom-made frames there before launching his own Dokomotto brand in 2013. A nod to Japan, renowned for its eyewear craftsmanship. Like a goldsmith, Florent draws and designs prototypes for his remarkable frames. He reinvents legendary styles, draws inspiration from art and nature, plays with shapes, materials, and dares bold colours. “I make about a dozen frame styles a year, only half of which are sold commercially. I can start a frame, leave it, and rework it several months later,” he confides. The glasses are then shaped by hand, numbered, and produced in small series in a Jura factory, with which he shares the same commitment to excellence and the preservation of French craftsmanship.

Transforming the material
“The aim is to make the exceptional accessible. Everything is done by hand, it’s a real added value, and also a challenge”. This synergy gave rise to the desire to explore other, more eco-friendly materials to replace acetate plate, which the craftsman creates himself, inlaying lace or Christmas garlands, for example. In a continuous quest for innovation, Florent designs a 100% natural collection from horn, wood, leather, and shells. These lightweight design gems made from bio-sourced materials are the result of collaboration with a Toulouse-based start-up company that blends the raw product with a plant-based composite for frame flexibility. A collection that has been noticed and recognised since being nominated for the Silmo d’Or in Paris (the major award at the Mondial de l’Optique) and simultaneously receiving the “Artisanat et des Métiers” prize at the Trophées Microfinance Success. Florent perseveres in his ecological approach and is currently working on a frame made from flowers. A local collaboration that will enable Grasse perfumers’ plant cake to be upcycled.

Par Carolyn Paul – Photo Jean-Michel Sordello