by Mitti Hicks
May 12, 2025
Maïmouna Tirera founded Maïwax Eyewear in 2015. She is France’s only Black woman eyeglass designer and introducing Africa to French eyewear.
From Senegalese patterns, denim, and other natural materials, there are hundreds of custom eyeglasses inside Maïwax. Maïmouna Tirera founded the brand in 2015. She is France’s only Black woman artisan lunetier (eyeglass designer).
Tirera is an optician by trade, but she realized early in her career that most frames did not fit faces well. She also noticed the industry lacked color and originality. Tirera decided to change that, especially as customers began demanding unique styles. She moved to Eastern France near the Swiss border to train in the art of designing eyeglasses. It’s a rare skill for people in France. According to Tirera, there are only 30 across the country, and only one other Black eyeglass designer.
While opticians can sell eyeglasses from different brands in France, only a handful of people are considered artisan luneiters.
“Artisan is an official title. It means that you have been trained,” Tirera said through a translator.
How The Black Eyeglass Designer is Introducing Africa To French Eyewear
Tirera drew inspiration from her African origins in Senegal when she started the brand in 2015. Her goal was to promote French craftsmanship and African culture. Each collection has an element that reminds people of Africa, including wax fabrics found in West Africa, cowrie shells, and Bogolan fabric from Mali.
All Maïwax frames are made from cellulose acetate, a natural plastic obtained primarily from cotton. Through a lengthy manufacturing process that takes place right in her shop, the plant fiber is transformed into a rigid and shiny sheet for eyeglass making.
For the first eight years, her boutique shop was in the heart of La Goutte d’Or, a neighborhood in Paris’s 18th arrondissement known as the “Little Africa of Paris.”
As her brand grew, she recently moved to the Quartier Saint-Paul, part of Paris’s historic Marais district. The move is significant for Tirera, who says she didn’t consider herself an artist growing up. She followed her passion and now has one of France’s most successful eyewear shops.
“It’s a real pleasure (to be here),” she says when asked about her reaction to creating a successful company. “When someone comes in with ideas, I (enjoy) working together. This is really about exchanging ideas and (collaborating) to create the finished product.”
Tirera takes orders worldwide for her custom eyeglasses and sunglasses, whether customers have a prescription or not.
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