What Surroundings does

Surroundings, operating as Alentour, is a French family-owned manufacturer of prefabricated building elements in reconstituted stone (pierre reconstituée), reinforced concrete (béton armé), and hemp concrete (béton-chanvre), founded in 1999 by Serge Wrobleski and headquartered in Lux, Burgundy (Côte-d'Or). The company operates a 16,000 m² production site with approximately 30 employees and offers more than 700 catalog product references plus fully bespoke manufacturing, spanning facade decoration, window and door frames, columns, fencing, terrace paving, pool coping, stair elements, urban furniture, and modular wine cellars. Core proprietary technologies include a delayed demolding process that eliminates porosity and cracking, in-house 3D CAD design integrated with CNC mold machining, and load-bearing monobloc structural elements that double as decorative pieces — a combination not commonly found in the French market.

The business serves four distinct customer segments: residential new construction (including the proprietary Maison ECO housing system built from Domibilis® reinforced concrete panels insulated with hemp concrete blocks, assemblable in 8-10 days for a 100 m² shell at approximately €55,000 TTC); the renovation sector (facade elements, structural components, heritage-matching reconstituted stone); municipalities and local governments (urban furniture, public-space amenities); and individual homeowners (custom wine cellars, garden elements). Revenue is generated entirely through one-time product sales — standard catalog items plus custom quotes for bespoke projects — distributed via material merchants throughout France, direct sales from the Lux showroom, a commercial office in Romania, and a German-border partnership. Distribution channels include website catalogs, Pinterest and Facebook showcases, participation in trade shows (Paysalia 2017 and 2019, AMRF rural mayors congress), and earned media coverage in regional French press.

The company holds four filed patents covering modular housing, large-format molded slabs, window frame systems, and adjustable staircases, and has won regional recognition including the Trophée Doras 100% Innovation 2019 for pool walls. Recent strategic activity centers on bio-sourced construction: it joined the BF2C Bourgogne-Franche-Comté Chanvre hemp-construction association in 2019 and collaborates with ADEME on a local hemp aggregate supply chain alongside regional research and economic-development partners. Alentour remains a privately held, family-led operating company with no external venture or private equity capital disclosed.

Name

Surroundings

Legal name

Alentour

Website

https://pierre-alentour.fr

Company type

Private

Founded year

1999

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Surroundings, operating as Alentour, is a French family-owned manufacturer of prefabricated reconstituted stone, reinforced concrete, and hemp concrete building elements. It serves residential construction, renovation, municipal, and individual homeowner markets across France, with limited distribution in Romania and Germany.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Lux

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Product sales: Sale of prefabricated construction elements in reconstituted stone, reinforced concrete, and hemp concrete; includes standard catalog products (700+ references) and custom-made products
2. Construction services: Prefabricated modular panel houses (Maison ECO) sold as complete structural kits for new construction

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Surroundings (operating as Alentour) is a French manufacturer of reconstituted stone, reinforced concrete, and hemp concrete prefabricated building elements. The company produces decorative and structural components for new construction and renovation, including facade elements, fences, terrace/pool products, stair elements, urban furniture, modular wine cellars, and the Maison ECO rapid housing system built on Domibilis® insulated reinforced concrete panels. With over 700 catalog references and bespoke capability, products are sold through material merchants and direct sales across France and select European markets.

Product overview

Alentour is a French manufacturer of reconstituted stone, reinforced concrete, and hemp concrete building products for construction and renovation. Founded in 1999 and based in Lux, Burgundy, the company operates as a unified manufacturing operation with over 700 product references. The core product lines include: (1) Reconstituted Stone elements for facades, fences, terraces, pools, and gardens; (2) Reinforced Concrete structural components including Domibilis® modular panels for the Maison ECO rapid housing system; (3) Hemp Concrete insulation blocks and panels for eco-construction; (4) Urban Furniture product line for municipalities. The company offers both standard catalog products and custom manufacturing, with internal R&D, 3D design, and CNC machining capabilities. Products are distributed through material merchants throughout France and serve both residential new construction and renovation markets.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Maison ECO: Eco-friendly and economic housing project featuring Domibilis prefabricated reinforced concrete panels insulated with hemp concrete blocks. Designed for rapid assembly, airtight and waterproof construction.
• Domibilis
• Domibilis

Products and services

• Pierre Reconstituée (Reconstituted Stone) Decorative and structural building elements made from compressed limestone aggregates, binders, and specific adjuvants. Produced via delayed demolding process. Used for facades, fencing, terraces, pools, gardens, and interior/exterior flooring. Resists soiling and ages with minimal maintenance.
• Béton Armé (Reinforced Concrete) Structural precast concrete elements including load-bearing columns, pillars, wall sections, and monolithic components that serve as both structural and decorative elements. Includes the Domibilis® modular panel system.
• Béton-Chanvre (Hemp Concrete) Prefabricated hemp concrete blocks and panels using natural hemp aggregates (chènevotte) with lime binder. Eco-friendly insulation material used in Maison ECO construction system.
• Maison ECO / Domibilis® Prefabricated Concrete Panels Prefabricated reinforced concrete wall panels for rapid residential construction. 35 modular types for houses, offices, garages, and pools. Airtight/waterproof, RT 2012 compliant. 8-10 days assembly for 100m² after foundations. Priced at approximately 55,000€ TTC for 100m² shell, insulated with hemp concrete blocks.
• Urban Furniture Line (Gamme Mobilier Urbain) Complete range of urban/street furniture in molded stone and decorative concrete including benches, tables, planters, flower boxes, border stones, bollards, fountains, wells, and kiosks. Customizable with engravings, patterns, colors. Targets municipalities, public spaces, landscaping projects.
• Swimming Pool Walls and Basins Prefabricated swimming pool walls and basins enabling solid and aesthetic pool construction with various finishes. Pre-fabricated smooth or decorative concrete walls for above-ground or semi-in-ground pools.
• Modular Wine Cellar Casings (Casiers à vin) Customizable modular casings for wine storage. Seven elements for creating bespoke cellars. Stone molded material provides thermal and hygrometric inertia for proper wine aging. 41cm depth for professional bottle positioning.
• Facade Elements Decorative facade elements including window sills, cornices, band courses, molding chapiters, columns, half-columns, monolithic door/window frames, and wall panels. Many exclusive load-bearing designs not available elsewhere in French market.
• Fence and Gate Products Monolithic and modular fence walls, gate pillars, decorative coping stones. Over 50 reference models up to 3m height and 5m length. Options include smooth concrete, stone-effect, or molded decorative finishes.
• Stair Elements Prefabricated stair stringers (crémaillères), steps, and landing platforms. Designed for easy installation with integrated lifting eyes. Adaptable to various step dimensions and finishes. Includes patented prefabricated adjustable staircase carriage.
• Pool and Terrace Products Pool coping stones (margelles), terrace paving, garden paths. Includes anti-slip surface treatments, large format tiles up to 240x305cm, decorative finishes.

Quantifiable outcome

• 15% cost reduction compared to equivalent surface construction
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• BF2C Bourgogne-Franche-Comté ChanvreminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 11 December 2019Alentour joined the BF2C association (member of Construire en Chanvre network) focused on developing local hemp construction. Association based in Héricourt, represented by president Jean-Luc Roulin.
• CFA Côte d'Or (Building Apprenticeship Center)minorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerHosts educational visits for building apprentices; aligns with company materials science education in biosourced materials.
• ADEMEcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborating with ADEME on hemp aggregate project within local supply chain logic, alongside COVATI, AMRF, GEDA, AGROSUP, ESIREM, and Chamber of Agriculture.
• AER BFC (Agence Économique Régionale Bourgogne-Franche-Comté)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEconomic development partnership supporting regional business growth, innovation, and eco-innovation. COVATI is shareholder with 54 other intercommunalities.
• Bourgogne Structure (external engineering bureau)coreTechnology or IntegrationExternal structural engineering firm validates structural elements ensuring compliance with reinforced concrete standards.
• Premice incubatorminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerSupported by Premice multi-specialized incubator for innovative companies in Bourgogne. Won OSEO competition (emergence category) for Dynamic Mosaic project.
• Maisons FerreiracoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorDijon-based builder commissioned four Maison Bio projects to be constructed using Domibilis panels. Master builder enthusiasm for product's aesthetic and structural qualities.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• KP1: KP1 is the French leader in precast concrete structural systems for residential and commercial construction, with national delivery — overlapping with Alentour's Domibilis reinforced-concrete modular panels and structural beams/columns product lines.
• Alkern: Alkern is one of France's leading independent manufacturers of precast concrete products for building, landscaping, and urban furniture, directly overlapping Alentour's core portfolio of facade elements, fencing, paving, and urban furniture in concrete/reconstituted stone.
• Stradal: Stradal (a CRH brand) is a major French manufacturer of precast concrete structural and architectural elements, highly comparable to Alentour's load-bearing monobloc columns, frames, and facade/screening products serving the same builder and municipal customer base.
• Fabemi: Fabemi is a French manufacturer of concrete and terracotta building products (blocks, slabs, landscaping elements) with national distribution — directly comparable to Alentour's concrete product catalogue and merchant-channel distribution strategy.
• Rector: Rector manufactures precast concrete floor systems, walls, and structural components for French residential construction, directly competing with Alentour's prefabricated reinforced concrete panels (Domibilis) and staircase/stringer offerings.
• Procity: Procity is a French manufacturer of street and urban furniture (benches, planters, bollards, shelters) directly competing with Alentour's Gamme Mobilier Urbain for the same municipal and public-space specification contracts.

Broad incumbents

• Wienerberger: Wienerberger is a European leader in clay and concrete building products (bricks, roof, pavers) — a much larger incumbent whose facade/cladding and paving lines overlap Alentour's reconstituted stone and decorative concrete offerings, though Wienerberger does not specialise in small-batch prefab or hemp concrete.
• Saint-Gobain: Saint-Gobain operates vast building-products portfolios including exterior facade systems and insulation; while not a direct precast-stone competitor, it sets the standard for distribution depth and could absorb or partner with a niche player like Alentour in the eco-construction segment.

Emerging players

• Ossabois: Ossabois is a French manufacturer of prefabricated timber-frame homes with a comparable rapid-assembly, eco-material value proposition to Alentour's Maison ECO/Domibilis system, though using wood rather than concrete/hemp — a useful adjacent benchmark for prefab housing economics.

Others

• Imerys: Imerys is a French mineral specialties group whose mineral-aggregate product range intersects Alentour's reconstituted-stone manufacturing input chain and bio-sourced construction innovation pathway.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/alentourlux
• Pinterestpinterest.fr/pierrealentour
• Xx.com/Alentour_Lux
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/alentour-sarl

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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 Surroundings