Le Centre d’organisation mauricien de services et d’éducation populaire

What Le Centre d’organisation mauricien de services et d’éducation populaire does

Le Centre d'organisation mauricien de services et d'éducation populaire (COMSEP) is a non-profit community organization founded November 16, 1986, in Trois-Rivières, Quebec. It serves approximately 4,000 people living in poverty annually through a model that combines popular education (drawing on Paulo Freire's conscientization approach), four social economy enterprises, family and community services, and collective advocacy. The organization is governed democratically, with a majority of its Board of Directors drawn from active members participating in committees, and operates with 15–20 permanent staff plus approximately 125 recurring volunteers. Its headquarters, the Maison de la Solidarité, is located at the intersection of three low-income Trois-Rivières neighborhoods (Sainte-Cécile, Saint-François d'Assise, and Notre-Dame-des-Sept-Allégresses) at 1060 rue Saint-François-Xavier, with an additional Friperie storefront at 749 boul. du Saint-Maurice.

The service portfolio spans four social economy enterprises — Friperie COMSEP (thrift store since 1986, staffed by ~50 volunteers), Communo-Gym (fitness center at $10/month), Traiteur Bouff'elles (catering service and cafeteria), and Café-COMSEP (fair-trade coffee packaging) — alongside educational programs including literacy and francisation (three learning levels), the F.A.P.E. employment preparation program (9 weeks of workshops plus 20 weeks of job-search support), the École citoyenne parent-child program in 8 schools, family collectives, tax clinics, and form-filling assistance. Pricing is mission-aligned: $2/year membership, $10/month Communo-Gym, with Friperie items sold at minimal or symbolic costs. Technology footprint is minimal — the organization runs on the Donna website platform, Facebook pages, email newsletters (Le Maringouin), and YouTube, with no proprietary AI/ML systems.

Revenue derives from five streams: membership fees, social-economy-enterprise sales, donations and fundraising campaigns (notably the Spaghetti Solidaire annual dinner, which raised over $30,765 in 2026, and the 'Ami.e.s de COMSEP' 2026–2027 campaign with a $70,000 goal), government grants (Centraide, Développement économique Canada, Emploi-Québec, Ministère de l'Immigration, Francisation et Intégration, Ministère de la Culture et des Communications, Ville de Trois-Rivières), and facility rentals at the Maison de la Solidarité. Key partners include the Centre de services scolaires du Chemin-du-Roy (24+ schools for Christmas basket and school success programs), Nature Québec (ecological parking lot), Cohorte C21 of the École d'entrepreneurship de Beauce ($280K family-space renovation), and the Corporation de développement culturel de Trois-Rivières. COMSEP marked its 40th anniversary in 2026 under the theme '40 ans d'histoire.'

Name

Le Centre d’organisation mauricien de services et d’éducation populaire

Legal name

Le Centre d'organisation mauricien de services et d'éducation populaire

Website

https://comsep.qc.ca

Company type

Private

Founded year

1986

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

COMSEP is a non-profit community organization founded in 1986 in Trois-Rivières, Quebec, that delivers popular education, literacy, employment training, family services, and four social economy enterprises to approximately 4,000 people in poverty annually. It operates through 15–20 staff and 125 volunteers under member-led democratic governance.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Trois-rivières

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership fees: COMSEP generates revenue through annual membership fees at $2 per year. Members receive benefits including free access to trainings, gift certificates for the friperie, and invitations to activities.
2. Social economy enterprises: Four social economy enterprises generate revenue and support employment integration: Friperie COMSEP (resale of used clothing/objects), Communo-Gym (fitness center at $10/month), Traiteur Bouff'elles (catering service), and Café-COMSEP (fair-trade coffee packaging). All profits are redistributed to workers and to COMSEP.
3. Donations and fundraising campaigns: Annual fundraising campaigns include the 'Ami.e.s de COMSEP' campaign with a $70,000 goal for 2026-2027, the Spaghetti Solidaire event (raising over $30,000 in 2026), and general donations. Donor receive charitable tax receipts.
4. Government grants and partnerships: COMSEP receives funding support from government bodies including Centraide, Développement économique Canada (DEC), the Ministry of Culture and Communications (for arts projects), the Ministry of Immigration, Francisation and Integration (MIFI), and Employment-Québec for employment training programs.
5. Facility rental: COMSEP owns the Maison de la Solidarité and rents out multiple rooms (multifunction rooms 115/116, cafeteria, meeting rooms 230/260) for events, conferences, and training. Rental includes WiFi, parking, and optional technical equipment.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels7 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

COMSEP is a community-based non-profit organization that delivers popular education, literacy and francisation programs, employment-readiness training (F.A.P.E.), and family support services to people living in poverty in Trois-Rivières, Quebec. It also operates four social economy enterprises — Friperie COMSEP (thrift store), Communo-Gym (community fitness center), Traiteur Bouff'elles (catering service), and Café-COMSEP (fair-trade coffee packaging) — that create employment for marginalized individuals while funding the mission.

Product overview

COMSEP (Centre d'organisation mauricien de services et d'éducation populaire) is a community organization founded in 1986 offering a comprehensive portfolio of integrated services for people in poverty situations in Trois-Rivières, Quebec. The organization operates multiple interconnected programs: social economy enterprises including Friperie COMSEP (thrift store), Café-COMSEP (fair trade coffee), Traiteur Bouff'elles (catering/cafeteria), and Communo-Gym (fitness center); educational programs including F.A.P.E. employment training, literacy and francisation services, and École Citoyenne school program; family support through Collectif Familles, community kitchens, and children's workshops; arts and culture including popular theater, choir, and annual spectacle; and community services such as tax clinics, form assistance, and room rentals. These services are complemented by fundraising activities including the annual Spaghetti Solidaire event and newsletter communications, all united by the organization's popular education philosophy aimed at social transformation and poverty alleviation.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Friperie COMSEP Thrift store selling used clothing, household items, dishes, toys, books, and small appliances at minimal or symbolic costs. Supports low-income individuals in the Trois-Rivières community and serves as a work placement site for employment training participants. Operated with approximately 50 volunteers.
• Communo-Gym Non-profit community fitness center offering physical assessments by certified kinesiologists, personalized training plans, and access to fitness equipment at subsidized rates ($10/month with minimum 3-month subscription; $39.99/year). Located in the Maison de la Solidarité.
• Traiteur Bouff'elles Catering service and social economy enterprise created by COMSEP members from collective kitchens. Offers cold buffets, boxed lunches, custom cooked meals, and operates the on-site cafeteria at Maison de la Solidarité. Provides employment for people excluded from the labor market.
• Café-COMSEP Fair-trade and organic coffee packaging enterprise offering certified organic, ethically sourced coffee in various types, formats, and grinds. Supports small producers in Southern countries and creates local employment for marginalized workers.
• F.A.P.E. (Formation adaptée préparatoire à l'emploi) Multi-trade employment preparation program of 9 weeks of workshops covering restaurant assistance, domestic help, warehouse clerk (including forklift operation), and retail display (cash register operations), followed by up to 20 weeks of job search support. Targeted at adults with low education who are far from the labor market.
• Alphabétisation et Francisation Literacy and French language training program using a conscientization approach (Paulo Freire inspired) to help adults improve reading, writing, math, and French proficiency. Offers three learning levels (Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced) and separate literacy workshops for immigrants.
• École Citoyenne Parent-child activity program delivered in kindergarten classes of 8 primary schools in Trois-Rivières, in partnership with the Centre de services scolaires du Chemin-du-Roy. Supports school success through themes including reading readiness, psychomotor skills, emotions, self-esteem, and healthy habits.
• Collectif Familles Family collective providing activities for parents and parent-child interactions including pedagogical days, coffee meetings, community kitchens, book and game lending, father's collective, and 0-5 years activities.
• Arts et Culture Cultural programming including popular theater, annual spectacle at Maison de la culture de Trois-Rivières, choir, percussion group, and participation in the International Poetry Festival. Integrates culture into literacy practices to facilitate recruitment of illiterate and excluded people.
• Collectifs Femmes et Hommes Women's and men's collectives providing meetings, discussions, training, and mutual aid for people in poverty situations, with feminist and social transformation approaches.
• Location de salles (Room Rental) Room rental service at Maison de la Solidarité offering multiple multi-functional spaces (Rooms 115 and 116 up to 180 people theatre-style, cafeteria up to 100 people, meeting rooms 230 and 260 for 20-25 people) for events, conferences, and meetings. Includes WiFi, free parking, and optional technical equipment rental.
• Services à la communauté Community services including reading club, leisure club, tax clinic, form-filling assistance, and social transit pricing for people in poverty situations.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 4,000 people in poverty reached annually
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• École d'entrepreneurship de Beauce (Cohorte C21)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2023Cohorte C21 of 25 entrepreneurs selected COMSEP's family space renovation project and raised $280,000 through fundraising activities including a 'Rêvons ensemble' gala with comedian André-Philippe Gagnon. The renovated family space was unveiled in February 2024 with permanent play installations for children.
• Nature QuébeccoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019COMSEP and Nature Québec partnered on the ecological parking lot project at the Maison de la Solidarité. Nature Québec conducted participatory design workshops with over 100 community members and designed the project, which became the first ecological parking lot in Trois-Rivières. The project involved planting 70+ trees and shrubs, installing bioretention swales, and creating community green spaces, with a total investment of nearly $1 million.
• Centre de services scolaires du Chemin-du-RoycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCOMSEP partnered with 24+ schools of the Centre de services scolaires du Chemin-du-Roy for Christmas basket operations (reaching 250+ families with 593 children), École citoyenne parent-child programs in 8 schools, and school success initiatives.
• Corporation de développement culturel de Trois-RivièresmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for the Club de la culture, providing cultural access to COMSEP members including spectacles and passes for events such as Festivoix and the Exposition agricole de Trois-Rivières.
• Ville de Trois-Rivières (Loisirs et plein air)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with the Ville de Trois-Rivières for the Club de loisirs, sports et plein air, providing free sports courses and access to activities for people in poverty, in collaboration with various sports associations and community recreation centers.
• Marché public et partenaires communautairesminorOthersVarious local partners including sports associations, cultural organizations, veterinary clinics (for pet assistance program), and food suppliers support COMSEP's programs.
• Sintra (Colas)minorOthersContributed to the ecological parking lot project through asphalt and construction materials.

Scale indicators15 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Frontier College: Canada-wide charitable literacy and essential-skills organization serving adults and youth. Closely comparable to COMSEP's literacy/francisation mandate and use of volunteer-driven community delivery, though operating nationally rather than in a single city.
• Literacy Quebec (alphabétisation Québec): Provincial network of community-based literacy providers across Quebec. Directly comparable mission and member-driven model to COMSEP's Alphabétisation et Francisation program.
• Accueil Bonneau: Long-standing Montreal community organization serving people in poverty and experiencing homelessness. Comparable social-economy model and member-services mix to COMSEP, though based in a larger urban center.

Broad incumbents

• YWCA Canada: National federation delivering housing, employment, and family support to women and families in poverty. Overlaps with COMSEP's Collectif Femmes and Collectif Familles work but at far greater scale and geographic scope.
• Boys and Girls Clubs of Canada: National youth and family support organization offering after-school, recreation, and homework-help programming. Overlaps with COMSEP's Aide aux leçons and École citoyenne programs but operates at much larger scale.
• Centraide (United Way) du Grand Montréal / Centraide Quebec network: Major Quebec federated funder and community-services backbone. Comparable in serving low-income populations but as an umbrella funder and operator rather than a single grass-roots organizer like COMSEP.

Others

• Regroupement des organismes communautaires de la Mauricie (ROCM): Regional network of Mauricie community organizations that likely includes COMSEP or its peers as members. Ecosystem-level adjacency rather than direct competition, useful for benchmarking local community-organization activity.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@COMSEP8415
• Facebookfacebook.com/profile.php

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles32 records

Subsidiaries4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Le Centre d’organisation mauricien de services et d’éducation populaire