Anticafe

What Anticafe does

Anticafé operates Europe's largest coworking-café network, founded in Paris in April 2013 by Leonid Goncharov around an original time-based pricing model in which customers pay only for the time they spend on premises (€6/hour per person, with an automatic €28 day pass once the fifth hour is reached). The core product is a shared workspace bundled with unlimited hot and cold drinks, self-service snacks, high-speed WiFi, printers, scanners, paperboards and projectors, plus on-site baristas; sub-products include hourly meeting-room rentals, full or partial space privatization for events of up to 100 people (full day, half day, cocktail formats), and the Le Pass B2B prepaid card program (capped at €250/person/month) that lets client companies fund employee access across the network. The underlying technology is a conventional WordPress site with an integrated booking engine (booking.anticafe.eu) and member portal (anticonnect.eu); there is no public API and no proprietary AI capability.

The business model is hybrid: Anticafé directly operates multiple spaces in central Paris (Beaubourg, La Fayette, Station F, La Défense, Canal St Martin, Louvre, République, and others) while regional locations in Lyon, Bordeaux, Strasbourg and Aix-en-Provence are run by franchisees under a model launched in 2015; an international location operates in Rome. Revenue streams include usage-based pay-as-you-stay, hourly meeting-room rental, quote-based event privatization, monthly B2B Le Pass billing, and franchise royalties. A points-based loyalty programme (€1 = 10 points) layers on top of the core transaction.

Anticafé raised €1.7 million in October 2019 from Nexity (real-estate services platform, equity participation) and Raise Sherpas via RAISE Expansion (participatory loan). Customer segments span freelancers and self-employed workers, corporate/enterprise clients (Havas Paris is a flagship Le Pass reference), event organizers, franchisees, and private/community event attendees. The network claims a community of 40,000+ people and 1,000+ daily visitors across 14 spaces in 6 cities. Leadership remains founder-led (Leonid Goncharov, CEO) with a small HQ support center team of approximately 9 staff plus per-location baristas.

Name

Anticafe

Legal name

ANTICAFÉ & CO, SAS

Website

https://anticafe.eu

Company type

Private

Founded year

2013

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Anticafé operates Europe's largest coworking-café network, charging customers by the hour (€6/hour) for shared workspace with unlimited drinks and barista service across 14 directly-operated and franchised spaces in 6 cities, plus a B2B Le Pass prepaid card program for corporate clients.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Coworking Café Services

NAICS

Limited-Service Restaurants (722513), Office Administrative Services (5611)

SIC

Retail-Eating & Drinking Places (5810), Retail-Eating Places (5812)

akta.pro primary industry

Coworking Cafes / Work Cafes (THAFADAJ)

Keywords

• Time-based coworking
• Shared office space
• Meeting room rental
• Event venue hire
• Corporate coworking passes

Headquarters

HQ city

Paris

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices14 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Pay-as-you-stay coworking (table reservation): Time-based consumption: €6 TTC/hour per person for individual access to a coworking seat, with unlimited hot/cold drinks, snacks, WiFi, and electrical outlets. Auto day pass applies after the 5th hour (€28). Payment is on site.
2. Meeting room reservation (réservation de salle): Hourly rental of private, closed, soundproof meeting rooms within the coworking space; capacity for groups, with table and chairs, electrical outlets. Tariff is hourly.
3. Space privatization (privatisation d'un espace): Full or partial privatization for corporate events with three formats — full day (8h), half-day (4h), cocktail (4h) — at negotiated rates. Includes furniture, technical equipment, drinks and snacks; optional catering and animations. Quote-based sale with cancellation fees scaling with proximity to event date (30%/50%/70%).
4. Le Pass prepaid cards / corporate accounts: B2B prepaid card solution: employer buys Le Pass for employees, billed monthly at 5€HT/hour or 23€/day per consumption, capped at 250€/person/month. Two operating modes: pre-credited account or monthly direct debit.
5. Franchise fees and royalties (implied): Regional expansion via franchise model. Lyon, Bordeaux and Strasbourg are operated by franchisees; Paris spaces are company-operated. Franchisee receives concept, brand, training, tools and ongoing support; pricing for this stream is not publicly disclosed.
6. Loyalty programme (1€ = 10 points): Free loyalty programme where each visit accumulates points (1€ = 10 points), redeemable for 1h free coworking (600 points), 1 free day pass (2,600 points), or 1 free monthly pass (30,000 points). Drives repeat visits rather than being a primary revenue stream.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion5 records

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

Anticafé operates a network of coworking cafés where customers pay only for time spent, at €6 TTC/hour per person with an automatic €28 day pass after the 5th hour. The offer includes a workstation, high-speed WiFi, electrical outlets, unlimited hot and cold drinks, self-service snacks, restroom access, and cleaning. The model combines the accessibility of a café, the equipment of a coworking space, and the warmth of a home, complemented by hourly meeting room rental, space privatization for events of 10–100 people, and the B2B Le Pass prepaid card product for corporate clients.

Product overview

Anticafé operates a single integrated coworking-café service offering built around a time-based pricing model, rather than a multi-product software platform. The core "Café-coworking" offer (Table reservation) provides pay-per-time access to shared workspace at €6/hour per person and is the foundation of the network, complemented by three sub-products that extend the same space into adjacent use cases: the "Room reservation" sub-product for private 2–15 person meetings, the "Privatisation d'un espace" (Co-meeting) sub-product for full or partial event buy-outs of 10–100 people, and the "Le Pass / Cartes prépayées" prepaid card system that lets client companies fund their employees' access to the entire network. The "Antistudios" add-on extends the offering into hybrid/digital meetings, while the "Programme fidélité" loyalty programme, "Workshops and open events," and the "Anticafé Franchise" commercial offering layer community, retention, and growth functions on top of the core café-coworking product. An editorial blog supports brand and community content.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Le Pass: Prepaid card product line offered through Anticafé's B2B offering, allowing companies to fund remote work access for employees across the Anticafé network.
• Antistudios
• Anticafé Evenementiel / Privatisation

Products and services

• Café-coworking (Table reservation) Pay-per-time shared coworking offer priced at €6 TTC/hour per person, with a day pass at €28 once the 5th hour is reached. Includes a nomadic workstation, high-speed WiFi, electrical outlets, unlimited hot and cold drinks (coffee by Coutume, tea by Kusmi), self-service snacks, restroom access, and cleaning. The first Anticafé opened under this model in Beaubourg, Paris, in April 2013.
• Room reservation (Salles de réunion) Hourly reservation of private, closed, furnished meeting rooms for 2 to approximately 15 people inside an Anticafé coworking space, guaranteeing confidentiality and providing electrical outlets. Reserved through the dedicated module on anticafe.eu.
• Privatisation d'un espace (Space privatization) Full or partial privatization of an Anticafé for events of 10 to 100 people, in three formats: full day (8h), half-day (4h), or cocktail (4h). Includes furniture setup, technical equipment (paperboards, screen, video projector, microphones, speakers), unlimited drinks, snacks, and optional catering and activities, with negotiated pricing.
• Le Pass / Cartes prépayées (Prepaid cards) Prepaid payment system purchased by a client company for its employees ("ayants droit"), usable across the Anticafé network for table reservations, room reservations, and coworking access. Two modes: account pre-credited with a chosen amount, or monthly direct debit of consumed amount. Billed at €5 excl. tax per hour or €23 per day per person, capped at €250 per person per month.
• Antistudios (Hybrid digital meeting rooms) Hybrid/digital meeting studio concept designed to support professional hybrid events with no technical issues, leveraging Anticafé's flexible shared workspaces and broadcasting equipment. Targeted at companies organizing events with remote participants.
• Anticafé Franchise (Ouvrir un Anticafé) Franchise programme available outside Paris, covering training, ready-to-use tools and processes, and ongoing support across financing, design, purchasing, operations, administration, HR, communication, and marketing. As of the source, 3 franchise locations operate in Lyon, Bordeaux, and Strasbourg; the company is actively recruiting franchisees in Lille and Nantes.

Named customers8 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core, minor and flagship.

• Coutume (Coutume Café / roastery)coreOEM/ Whitelabel/ Licensing PartnerParis-based specialty coffee roaster that has created a custom "Blend" exclusively for Anticafé, served unlimited to all clients. Also co-developed the Cold Brew drink with the Anticafé team. Branding prominently features Coutume in the concept, FAQ and drinks pages.
• Kusmi TeaminorOEM/ Whitelabel/ Licensing PartnerPremium tea brand whose selection is served at Anticafé. Prominently referenced in the Concept page as the official tea partner ("thé sélectionné par Kusmi") for unlimited tea service.
• Havas ParisflagshipGTM or Marketing PartnerMajor French advertising agency that has been a flagship Le Pass (B2B prepaid) customer for several years. The Havas Paris Seven teams use Anticafé as a flexible extension of their Puteaux open space, with quotes from Vice-Présidente exécutive Elisabeth Billiemaz and Associate Director Olivier featured on the Le Pass landing page and the blog.
• DayuseminorGTM or Marketing PartnerDayuse hotel-daybooking platform referenced in a 2021 blog post titled "Les astuces pour travailler en mobilité avec Internet (rapprochement avec Dayuse)" — a marketing/awareness partnership around mobile work.
• Crème de la crèmeminorGTM or Marketing PartnerSelective French community of digital freelancers (founded by Jean-Charles Varlet). Co-organized the "Future of Work and Digital Nomads" event at Anticafé Station F on 20 June 2019; CEO Jean-Charles interviewed on the Anticafé blog.
• Loop (MaBoutiqueLoop)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerZero-waste packaging retailer. Co-hosted an awareness workshop on waste management at Anticafé and contributed a "5 tips to reduce waste" article on the blog (Sept 2019), with a second piece of organic content around the partnership.
• 23heures59editions (Anne Humbert)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerNotebook/publishing startup whose founder Anne Humbert was featured in a blog interview and giveaway on the Anticafé Instagram account.
• OVHcoreTechnology or IntegrationCloud hosting provider hosting anticafe.eu (OVH SAS, 2 rue Kellermann, 59100 Roubaix, RCS Lille Métropole 424 761 419). Disclosed in the legal notice.
• MuendisminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerTechnical agency that built the anticafe.eu website (SAS, capital €1,000, RCS Lyon 829 206 663, 1 Boulevard Vivier Merle, 69003 Lyon). Disclosed in the legal notice.
• HEIMA HEIMAminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerGraphic design agency credited with the graphic conception of the anticafe.eu site. Disclosed in the legal notice.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• WeWork: Global coworking incumbent that has expanded into flexible office and on-demand workspace products. Competes with Anticafé in Paris and other French cities for both individual flexible members and enterprise accounts, but at significantly larger scale and on a subscription model rather than time-based.
• IWG (Spaces, Regus): World's largest flexible workspace operator (Spaces, Regus, HQ, Signature) with a heavy Paris and French regional presence. Targets the same B2B corporate flex-space buyer as Anticafé's Le Pass programme and has launched drop-in and on-demand products that overlap with Anticafé's hourly offer.

Direct peers

• Kwerk: Premium French coworking chain operating several large sites in Paris. Competes with Anticafé for the same Parisian freelancer and SME enterprise customer base, with similar location-driven real-estate economics and a hospitality-grade workspace positioning.
• Walt: French coworking-café hybrid that combines café service with flexible workspace, a near-direct copy of Anticafé's positioning. Targets freelancers and remote workers in Paris with a hospitality-driven, time-based product very similar to Anticafé's pay-as-you-stay model.
• Morning Coworking (Morning): French coworking network (formerly Morning Croissant) with multiple Parisian locations focused on community-driven, design-led shared workspace. Overlaps with Anticafé's freelancer and community-led positioning, with a comparable price point and target customer.
• Deskopolitan: French coworking operator with several Paris locations serving freelancers, startups and corporate clients. Competes with Anticafé for the same B2B and individual customer base, including corporate satellite-office deals analogous to Le Pass.
• The Bureau Coworking: Independent French coworking brand with multiple Paris sites offering hot desks, dedicated desks and meeting rooms. Targets a similar freelance and SME customer base to Anticafé with comparable pricing and amenities.

Regional players

• Now Co-working (Nowww): French coworking chain focused on secondary French cities (Lyon, Lille, Bordeaux, Toulouse, Marseille). Relevant to Anticafé as a regional competitor where Anticafé relies on its franchise model, particularly in cities targeted for franchise expansion such as Lille and Nantes.

Emerging players

• Bureaux à Partager: French marketplace and coworking operator for shared and flexible offices across France. Comparable to Anticafé on the B2B corporate-flex-office demand side and as a discovery channel for flexible workspace in cities where Anticafé does not yet operate directly.

Others

• Station F: Paris-based world's largest startup campus, host of one of Anticafé's physical locations. Tangentially comparable as a flexible workspace ecosystem player, and a direct partner/landlord for Anticafé's Station F site, but not a direct competitor to Anticafé's time-based model.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/pg/anticafebordeaux/events
• Instagraminstagram.com/anticafe.eu
• Xx.com/anticafefrance

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds2 records

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Anticafe