Who's Who

What Who's Who does

Editions Lafitte-Hébrard, operating under the trade name Who's Who in France, is a private French publishing company that produces a curated biographical dictionary of selected French professionals, executives, scientists, and craftsmen. The publication has been issued annually since 1953 and is distributed in both print and digital formats. The core product is a proprietary biographical database containing profiles of selected French personalities, organized alphabetically, with searchable fields covering identity, education, career, interests, and contact details.

The technology stack is a SaaS-based platform delivered through a web browser and an iOS mobile application (App Store only), supported by a dedicated biographical search engine and a personal account space ("Espace personnel") where users manage orders and access. Underlying infrastructure is hosted by KERNIX in Paris. The company is GDPR-compliant under French data protection law. Distribution is exclusively direct: sales occur through the whoswho.fr e-commerce storefront (credit card, PayPal, check) and postal delivery, with no third-party resellers or marketplaces.

The business model combines five revenue streams: an annual print edition (one-time/perpetual license), single-biography online access (annual subscription with updates), biography packs (annual subscription without updates), full digital access (annual subscription with updates), and an "Integral" bundle combining digital plus print. Use is restricted to professionals acting in commercial, industrial, artisanal, liberal, or agricultural capacities. Marketing is concentrated on owned digital properties (website, TikTok @whoswho.fr, weekly newsletter) plus direct B2B outreach to high-purchasing-power readerships through a dedicated partner space. The company is a wholly-owned SASU subsidiary of ADMEDIAGROUP, a Paris-based strategic holding led by Franck Papazian.

Name

Who's Who

Legal name

Editions Lafitte-Hébrard

Website

https://whoswho.fr

Company type

Private

Founded year

1953

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Who's Who in France publishes an annual biographical dictionary of selected French professionals and business leaders, distributed via annual print editions and a subscription-based online platform accessible through web and iOS mobile app.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Biographical Reference Publishing

NAICS

Book Publishers (513130), Web Search Portals, Libraries, Archives, and Other Information Services (5192)

SIC

Periodicals: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2721)

akta.pro primary industry

Politics, Current Affairs & Social Commentary Publishing (MPAJAAAM)

Keywords

• Biographical dictionary publishing
• Professional reference directory
• Executive biography database
• Business leader profiling
• Reference content publishing

Headquarters

HQ city

Levallois-perret

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. WHO'S WHO IN FRANCE Print Edition: Annual print publication of the biographical dictionary sold as a one-time purchase. Delivered by post with delivery fees. The edition is published annually (e.g., 2024, 2025 editions). No updates are provided after purchase.
2. Digital Subscription - Individual Biography: Access to a single selected biography online for one year, including updates during that period.
3. Digital Subscription - Biography Pack: Pack of predetermined biography consultations within one year. Each consultation of a biography counts against the pack even if the same biography is consulted multiple times. Packs do not include updates to biographies.
4. Digital Subscription - Full Access (Digital): Full online access to all biographies in WHO'S WHO IN FRANCE plus all updates, for one year.
5. Integral Subscription (Digital + Print): Combined offering providing both the full digital access (all biographies + updates for one year) and the print edition of the WHO'S WHO IN FRANCE for the chosen year.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Editions Lafitte-Hébrard, operating as WHO'S WHO IN FRANCE, curates and publishes a proprietary biographical dictionary of selected French notable personalities. The dictionary is sold as an annual print edition and as a continuously updated online database accessible via the company's website and a native iOS mobile application, with access restricted exclusively to professional users acting in commercial, industrial, artisanal, liberal, or agricultural capacities.

Product overview

Who's Who in France operates as a biographical reference platform offering a portfolio of products centered on its core biographical dictionary of selected French notable personalities. The offering comprises two primary formats: a paper edition (WHO'S WHO IN FRANCE en format papier) published annually, and an online database (WHO'S WHO IN FRANCE en ligne) accessible via website and mobile application. These are distributed through multiple subscription tiers including single biography access, biography packs, full digital subscriptions, and an integral package combining digital and paper formats. Users access content through a personal account (Espace personnel) requiring registration and login credentials.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• WHO'S WHO IN FRANCE en format papier (Print Edition) Annual paper edition of the biographical dictionary featuring selected French notable personalities, organized alphabetically with biographies containing professional information, formations, family details, and contact information. Sold as a one-time purchase with delivery by post; no updates are provided after purchase.
• WHO'S WHO IN FRANCE en ligne (Online Edition) SaaS-based online biographical dictionary accessible via web browser, offering searchable biographies of selected French notable personalities with a dedicated search engine for identity, education, career, interests, and contact criteria. Sold as annual subscriptions with multiple tiers (single biography, biography pack, or full access) and continuous updates during the subscription term.
• WHO'S WHO IN FRANCE iOS Mobile Application Native iOS mobile application downloadable from the App Store that provides access to the Who's Who in France online database for users with a valid digital subscription. Functional only with an active subscription; compatible only with the latest iOS versions.

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• AXAminorOthersAXA is the professional liability insurance (RC Pro) provider for Editions Lafitte-Hébrard. Policy taken out at 36 rue Pottier, 78150 Le Chesnay, tel: 01 39 55 83 52.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Emerging players

• Crunchbase: Platform providing structured data on companies and the people behind them, with a subscription model. An emerging player in the professional/business reference category that intersects with Who's Who's executive-information use cases, particularly for fast-growth companies.

Direct peers

• Marquis Who's Who: The US-licensed operator of the WHO'S WHO brand, publishing biographical directories of American notable figures across print and digital. Directly comparable to Who's Who in France as a sister franchise operating the same concept in a different geography.
• Verif.com: French B2B information platform providing company financials, executive data, and biographical information on French business leaders. Direct competitor in the French professional biographical reference market.
• Infogreffe: Official French registry of company information operated by the Greffes des Tribunaux de Commerce. Provides authoritative data on French businesses and their representatives — directly competes for French professional/corporate reference subscriptions.
• Kompass: International B2B directory providing company and executive information across 70+ countries. Directly comparable to Who's Who in France in product structure — searchable professional/business reference database sold via subscription.
• Societe.com: Leading French company and executive information directory, providing biographical and corporate data on French businesses and their leaders. Directly competes with Who's Who in France for the same French professional reference use case.

Others

• LinkedIn: Global professional networking platform providing free biographical and career information on hundreds of millions of professionals, including French executives. An adjacent substitute for Who's Who's networking and background-research use cases.

Broad incumbents

• Dun & Bradstreet: Global leader in business data and analytics, providing company and executive information across virtually all markets. A broader incumbent operating in the same B2B professional reference space with overlapping but wider coverage.
• Bloomberg Professional Services: Provides extensive biographical and corporate data on executives and companies as part of its broader financial information platform. Comparable as a broad incumbent offering professional reference data, though embedded in a much larger financial-information offering.

Regional players

• Bilendi: European data services and digital marketing solutions provider with French roots. Comparable as a French-headquartered professional data and survey/marketing services platform addressing similar B2B audiences.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• TikToktiktok.com/@whoswho.fr
• Xx.com/WhosWho_Fr

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

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 Who's Who