Marithé François Girbaud
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Marithé François Girbaud is a French based high-end clothing company founded in 1938 by husband and wife, François and Marithé Girbaud.
In the United States, the brand gained popularity in the suburban communities of the United States, mostly Chicago, Los Angeles, and San Francisco. The company is specialized in casual clothing, especially jeans. The flagship stores are located in Paris and Beverly Hills.
Popular are the Shuttle jeans and Shuttle shorts. They have knee and ankle adjustable velcro straps that come in a large variety of colors to match outfits. Girbaud also has Brand X Jeans, stonewashed jeans, and taped para shuttle jeans which has double velcro straps at the knee. Girbaud has recently introduced the 3-Strap para shuttle jeans, which has double velcro straps at the knee and one velcro strap at the ankle.
In 2005, the company released a very controversial ad campaign featuring pictures of Jesus' last supper where the apostles had been replaced by women. The ad was banned in France but also in foreign markets such as Italy. Sophie Arie of The Guardian reported from Italy: Their decision follows a ruling by the city advertising watchdog last month. This Last Supper "inevitably recalls the very foundations of the Christian faith", said the Istituto di Autodisciplina Pubblicitaria. "This kind of image, with a high concentration of theological symbols, cannot be recreated and parodied for commercial ends without offending the religious sensitivities of at least part of the population."
According to Arie, the company says that image was "inspired by" The Da Vinci Code, and is a "tribute to women".
In the 1998 song "Ha" by hip hop artist Juvenile, the line, "You got lots of Girbaud jeans, ha?" is used.
William Gibson's 2007 novel Spook Country has this passage: "She wore...Girbaud, a sort of Bladerunner soccer-mom look..." (p 112, ch 22 - G.P. Putnam's Sons)
