Louis Réard (French pronunciation: [lwi ʁeaʁ]; 10 October 1896 – 16 September 1984) was a French automobile engineer and clothing designer who introduced the modern two-piece bikini in July 1946. He opened a bikini shop and ran it for the next 40 years.
Herminie Cadolle (1845–1926) was a French inventor of the modern bra and founder of the Cadolle Lingerie House. Cadolle was born, raised, and lived much of her early life in France. She was a close friend of the insurrectionist Louise Michel, who participated in the Paris Commune of 1871. Fearing state repression after the murderous defeat of the Commune uprising, Cadolle and her family fled for safety to Buenos Aires, Argentina. In 1887, Cadolle opened a shop selling made-to-measure underwear. In 1889, Cadolle returned to Paris where she opened a similar lingerie workshop. There, she invented a two-piece undergarment. The lower part was a hybrid-corset for the waist and the upper supported the breasts by means of shoulder straps. A patent for the invention was filed in 1889. Cadolle exhibited her invention at the Great Exposition of 1900 and by 1905 the upper half was being sold separately as modern-day bras.Corsets had been briefly unpopular during the French Revolution of 1789, when they were associated with the aristocracy, but soon they returned to prominence as the political mood settled again. From the middle of the 19th century, gradually, the corset came under more and more criticism. Advocates for women’s rights, like Cadolle, and physicians highlighted its role in causing physical discomfort and health complications. Additionally, Cadolle continued to work into the 1920s. Her efforts were spurred by the First World War, which saw women enter the factories when male workers left for war. Comfort rather than beauty was crucial, so the corset was out and the bra was in. Cadolle’s innovation and different variations of it are still dominant in female undergarments, as is the desire for women’s rights and the rebellion against adherence to societal norms and the ideal image of a woman’s body.Cadolle became a fitter of bras to queens, princesses, dancers, and actresses. Mata Hari was among her customers. She was also the first to use cloth incorporating rubber (elastic) thread. Cadolle’s business is still running today.
Benoît Caranobe (born 12 June 1980 in Vitry-sur-Seine) is a French former gymnast who won a bronze medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Caranobe was the first Frenchman to medal in the Individual All-Around competition since Marco Torrès won silver and Jean Gounot won bronze in said event at the 1920 Antwerp Olympics.
The Blaton Family is a Belgian family active in the construction industry since 1865.
Regina Louf (born 1969), also known as witness X1 in the Dutroux case, is a victim of organised sexual abuse and author. She was one of the most prominent witnesses in the case around Marc Dutroux.
Sir Joseph Beecham, 1st Baronet (8 June 1848 – 23 October 1916) was a British businessman.
Beecham was the eldest son of Thomas Beecham and Jane Evans. He played a large part in the growth and expansion of his father's medicinal pill business which he joined in 1866. He was responsible for Beechams' factory and office in Westfield Street, St. Helens, being built in 1885. A factory was subsequently opened in New York followed by more factories and agencies in several other countries. The increasing demands placed on him by his father's business meant he had to step down from his position as the parish organist of St John the Evangelist, Ravenhead.
Beecham was the proprietor of the Aldwych Theatre in London, a justice of the peace for Lancashire and was mayor of St. Helens between 1889 and 1899 and again from 1910 to 1912. He was made a baronet, of Ewanville in the Parish of Huyton in the County Palatine of Lancaster, in 1914. He was invested as a Knight of the Order of Saint Stanislaus by Tsar Nicholas II. Beecham was a patron of the arts and purchased a number of paintings by J. M. W. Turner. Beecham married Josephine Burnett in 1873.
Patrick Drahi (French pronunciation: [patʁik dʁai]; Arabic: باتريك دراحي; Hebrew: פטריק דרהי; born 20 August 1963) is an Israeli billionaire magnate and investor with interests in media and telecoms. He is the founder and controlling shareholder of the European-based telecom group Altice. A former French citizen, he lives in Switzerland.
Al Cohen (January 11, 1926 – December 13, 2020) was the owner, and a well-known demonstrator of magic tricks, at Al's Magic Shop in Washington, D.C.
Stéphane Bancel (born July 20, 1972) is a French business executive. He is the chief executive officer (CEO) of the American pharmaceutical and biotechnology company Moderna, known for its COVID-19 vaccine. Before joining Moderna, Bancel was the CEO of French diagnostics company BioMérieux. Bancel is a partner at Flagship Pioneering, and has served on the boards of Indigo Agriculture, Boston's Museum of Science, and Qiagen. As of May 2023, his net worth was estimated at US$4.1 billion, owning about 8% of Moderna.
