Frac des Pays de la Loire
Frac des Pays de la Loire is a non-profit regional contemporary art fund established in 1982, holding a 2,000+ work public collection and operating exhibition sites in Carquefou and Nantes across the Pays de la Loire region of France.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1982
- HeadquartersCarquefou, France
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What Frac des Pays de la Loire does
Frac des Pays de la Loire is a regional contemporary art fund (Fonds régional d'art contemporain) operating as a French non-profit association (loi 1901), founded in 1982 and headquartered in Carquefou, with a secondary site at the Hangar à Bananes in Nantes. It maintains a public collection of over 2,000 contemporary artworks and is part of the national Platform network of 22 French Fracs. Its mission is to acquire, conserve, exhibit, and circulate contemporary art across the Pays de la Loire region.
The institution's core programmatic outputs include 20+ exhibitions annually (at its own sites and partner venues), the Ateliers Internationaux residency program (running annually since 1984), an educational outreach program reaching approximately 20,000 students and teachers per year, and a publications program with 140+ titles to date. Digital mediation tools include Crée ton expo! (a children's virtual exhibition builder), a 3D virtual tour of restricted areas including restoration workshops and reserves, Le Frac à la Maison remote resources, and a podcast series (Voix d'exposition). A documentation center holds 15,000+ titles.
The Frac's business model is hybrid public-private. Primary funding is recurrent institutional subsidy from the French State via DRAC Pays de la Loire and the Conseil régional des Pays de la Loire. Supplementary revenue streams include annual memberships (€30 active, €100 super, €100+ benefactor), tax-deductible donations (66% deduction under French mécénat rules), corporate patronage (notably Sodebo since 2012, plus RAJA, Bouvet Ladubay, Blend), venue privatization (€100-€500/h), and sales of editions, catalogs, and merchandise via the online boutique. Customer segments span individual visitors, school groups (maternelle to lycée), regional cultural institutions, and corporate clients. Pricing for admissions is generally free; monetization rests on volume-based engagement, memberships, and ancillary commercial services rather than per-unit ticket sales.
Frac des Pays de la Loire firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Frac des Pays de la Loire
- Legal name
- Frac des Pays de la Loire
- Website
- https://fracdespaysdelaloire.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1982
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Frac des Pays de la Loire is a non-profit regional contemporary art fund established in 1982, holding a 2,000+ work public collection and operating exhibition sites in Carquefou and Nantes across the Pays de la Loire region of France.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Frac des Pays de la Loire industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Contemporary Art Museum
- NAICS
- Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (712)
- SIC
- Miscellaneous Publishing (2741), Books: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2731)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Art Galleries & Exhibition Spaces (Commercial & Nonprofit) (THAJADAH)
Keywords
Where Frac des Pays de la Loire is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Carquefou
- HQ country
- France
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices2 records
Markets served
Frac des Pays de la Loire business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Others
Revenue model
- Public Funding: Core operational funding from the French State (Direction régionale des affaires culturelles) and Conseil régional des Pays de la Loire, supporting collection development, exhibitions, and educational programming.
- Membership Fees: Annual membership at €30 (active), €100 (super), or €100+ (benefactor), providing access to exclusive events, vernissages, conferences, and workshops with discounts on editions.
- Donations: Tax-deductible donations (66% deduction) supporting preservation of the public collection, production of new works, artist accompaniment, and cultural mediation actions.
- Space Privatization: Rental of Frac spaces (large hall 420m², small hall 75m², outdoor areas) for corporate events, seminars, galas, and cocktails at rates from €100/h to €500/h.
- Editions and Publications Sales: Sale of artist books, catalogs, and merchandise through online boutique, with discounts for members, including limited editions and creative workshops.
- Corporate Patronage/Mécénat: Corporate sponsorship arrangements with regional companies around educational, creative, and solidarity projects, with major patron Sodebo supporting since 2012.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Annual | Active Membership - €30/year |
| Subscription | Annual | Super Membership - €100/year |
| Subscription | Annual | Benefactor Membership - €100+/year |
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Children's Workshop - €40 |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Full Venue Privatization - from €500/h |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Small Room Privatization - from €100/h |
| Other | Pay-as-you-go | Donations - variable amount |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels6 records
Marketing channels8 records
Frac des Pays de la Loire product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Frac des Pays de la Loire is a regional contemporary art fund (Fonds régional d'art contemporain) that acquires, conserves, and exhibits a public collection of over 2,000 contemporary artworks at two sites (Carquefou and Nantes). It runs an annual international artist residency program (Ateliers Internationaux, since 1984), stages 20+ exhibitions per year across the Pays de la Loire region, delivers school-based educational programs reaching nearly 20,000 students, rents its spaces for corporate events, sells publications, and operates a documentation research center with 15,000+ titles.
Product overview
Frac des Pays de la Loire is a regional contemporary art institution operating as a unified service organization rather than a platform-plus-modules architecture. Its core offerings center on the permanent collection of over 2,000 contemporary artworks, which are presented through rotating exhibitions at its two sites (Carquefou and Nantes) and across partner venues throughout the region. The institution's key services include the Ateliers Internationaux annual residency program, school-based educational programs, and mediation tools. Digital offerings include Crée ton expo! virtual exhibition creator, the Visite virtuelle 3D tour, and Le Frac à la Maison remote resources. Supporting offerings include publications (Éditions), the documentation research center, venue privatization services, membership programs, and accessibility services.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Privatisation (Venue Rental) Rental of Frac exhibition spaces (large hall 420m², small hall 75m², outdoor areas) for corporate events, seminars, galas, conferences, and product launches, priced from €100/h to €500/h depending on venue selection; target clients are corporate event planners.
- Adhésion (Annual Membership) Annual membership program with tiered subscriptions (Active €30/year, Super €100/year, Benefactor €100+/year) providing access to exclusive events, vernissages, guided tours, workshops, member-only events, and discounts on publications and boutique products; open to individual supporters.
- Éditions du Frac (Publications) Over 140 publications including exhibition catalogs, artist books, and documentary resources sold through the Frac's online boutique (Hello Asso), with discounts available for members; target buyers include art professionals, researchers, and the general public.
- Ateliers Internationaux (International Artist Residency) Annual international residency program operating since 1984 that hosts artists and curators to develop new works, with resulting exhibitions curated for the public; the residency supports artistic production and is central to the Frac's collection and programming strategy.
- Actions en milieu scolaire (School Educational Programs) Educational programs for schools across all levels (maternelle to lycée) including visits, artist-led workshops, and lending kits (video, book, game), reaching approximately 20,000 students and teachers annually and aligned with national curricula; free of charge on reservation for educational institutions.
- Children's Creative Workshops Holiday creative workshops for children ages 6-12 (e.g., fall holiday sessions from 10am to 1pm and 2pm to 5pm) priced at €40 per workshop, led by artists around collection works; limited to 10 children per workshop, with full amount going to artists and materials.
Quantifiable outcome
- Over 50,000 people engaged annually through activities
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Frac des Pays de la Loire
Customer profileNamed customers8 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Frac des Pays de la Loire technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration9 records
Feature4 records
Frac des Pays de la Loire partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Six partnerships are on record, tiered minor, core and major.
- RAJA Collection – Art ContemporainminorCorporate art collection supporting the De plain-pied Xavier Veilhan exhibition (May-September 2024) at the Nantes site, providing additional resources for the monographic show.
- Platform (Regroupement des Frac)coreNational network of regional contemporary art funds (22 Fracs) organizing collaborative events including WEFRAC national weekends and sharing best practices.
- Musée d'arts de NantesmajorMajor partner co-presenting Plants & People exhibition combining works from both collections, exploring themes of conservation and preservation through plant metaphor.
- Hellcity / HellfestminorRestaurant venue presenting François Morellet works as part of the centenary celebrations, hosting 100 X Morellet exhibition in Clisson.
- Zoo centre d'art contemporainminorNantes contemporary art center collaborating on Effractions exhibition, presenting works from Frac collection in dialogue with Zoo's editorial history.
- L'Orange BleueminorSports coaching partner for Footing Plants & People event, combining contemporary art discovery with physical activity in nature at the Carquefou site.
Scale indicators10 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Frac des Pays de la Loire competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Frac Occitanie Montpellier: Southern French FRAC with parallel exhibition, residency, and educational missions funded through the same DRAC/Région framework.
- Frac Nouvelle-Aquitaine MÉCA: Bordeaux-based FRAC housed in the MÉCA cultural cluster, sharing the same funding model (state + region + mécénat) and contemporary collection/exhibition mandate.
- Frac Grand Large — Hauts-de-France: Regional FRAC in Dunkerque with a comparable public collection, exhibition cycle, and residency/mediation programming. Closest structural analog as a mid-sized coastal FRAC.
- Frac Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur: Marseille-based regional FRAC with a comparable public collection and contemporary art exhibition programming for a similarly sized region.
- Frac Bretagne: Another French regional Fonds régional d'art contemporain with the same national FRAC mandate, public collection, exhibition programming, and educational outreach. Directly comparable as a peer FRAC operating under identical Ministry of Culture framework.
- Frac Île-de-France: Paris-region FRAC with the same national mandate, comparable collection depth, and a broader audience reach that makes it a relevant scale benchmark.
- Frac Centre-Val de Loire: Orléans-based FRAC focused on architecture and contemporary art, sharing the same institutional structure, public collection mission, and regional cultural-mediator role.
Broad incumbents
- Centre Pompidou-Metz: Decentralized branch of Centre Pompidou with major temporary exhibitions and strong visitor numbers. Comparable contemporary-art focus but operates as a national institution with significantly larger budget and brand reach.
- MAC VAL — Musée d'Art Contemporain du Val-de-Marne: Larger French public contemporary art museum with a permanent collection, rotating exhibitions, and educational programming. Comparable mission but operates at greater scale and as a museum rather than a regional fund.
Regional players
- Le Lieu Unique: Nantes-based cultural venue offering contemporary art, performance, and exhibitions. Co-presents programming with Frac (e.g., 'Sur tes lèvres'), competing for the same local audience and corporate event clients.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Frac des Pays de la Loire social profiles
Digital presenceFrac des Pays de la Loire financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Frac des Pays de la Loire leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles7 records
Frac des Pays de la Loire funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frac des Pays de la Loire M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Frac des Pays de la Loire
What does Frac des Pays de la Loire do?
Frac des Pays de la Loire is a regional contemporary art fund (Fonds régional d'art contemporain) that acquires, conserves, and exhibits a public collection of over 2,000 contemporary artworks at two sites (Carquefou and Nantes). It runs an annual international artist residency program (Ateliers Internationaux, since 1984), stages 20+ exhibitions per year across the Pays de la Loire region, delivers school-based educational programs reaching nearly 20,000 students, rents its spaces for corporate events, sells publications, and operates a documentation research center with 15,000+ titles.
Is Frac des Pays de la Loire a public or private company?
Frac des Pays de la Loire is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was Frac des Pays de la Loire founded?
Frac des Pays de la Loire was founded in 1982. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Frac des Pays de la Loire based?
Frac des Pays de la Loire is headquartered in Carquefou, France, in the Europe region.
How does Frac des Pays de la Loire make money?
Six revenue lines are on record. Public Funding is the primary driver. The others are membership Fees, donations, space Privatization, editions and Publications Sales and corporate Patronage/Mécénat.
Who are Frac des Pays de la Loire's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Frac Occitanie Montpellier, Frac Nouvelle-Aquitaine MÉCA, Frac Grand Large — Hauts-de-France, Frac Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, Frac Bretagne, Frac Île-de-France and Frac Centre-Val de Loire. Broad incumbents are Centre Pompidou-Metz and MAC VAL — Musée d'Art Contemporain du Val-de-Marne. Le Lieu Unique is listed as a regional player.
Does Frac des Pays de la Loire have an API?
No public API is recorded for Frac des Pays de la Loire.
What industry is Frac des Pays de la Loire in?
Frac des Pays de la Loire's product category is Contemporary Art Museum. Its primary akta.pro industry code is THAJADAH, Art Galleries & Exhibition Spaces (Commercial & Nonprofit). Its NAICS code is 712 and its SIC code is 2741.