Casques Bleus Nord Franche-Comté

What Casques Bleus Nord Franche-Comté does

Casques Bleus Nord Franche-Comté is a French nonprofit association (association loi 1901) founded on January 9, 2018, in Belfort, Bourgogne-Franche-Comté, that provides free, confidential 24/7 support to entrepreneurs and business leaders facing professional or psychological difficulties. The organization is the first structure to hold the Groupement de Prévention Agrééé (GPA) "Casques Bleus BFC" agrément with prefectoral approval in the region, and it operates on a dual-axis model: treating business problems (payment disputes, insolvency, contractual issues) and addressing the psychological distress of the entrepreneur simultaneously. Service delivery is anchored by two volunteer business leaders who personally engage with each case, drawing on a mobilized partner network that includes the Préfecture du Territoire de Belfort, departmental and agglomeration authorities, Assurance Maladie, Banque Populaire BFC, and specialist consultancies, with referrals to the APESA national network for up to 5 free psychology sessions per entrepreneur.

The organization has no proprietary technology platform; its core "product" is the Dispositif Casques Bleus NFC, a coordinated human service accessed via a single 24/7 hotline (07 62 68 19 77) and a website contact form. The service is funded entirely through public partnerships, institutional subsidies, and philanthropic events (notably La Nuit du Bien Commun, where it was a 2024 laureate). Geographic scope is regional, covering the Territoire de Belfort and Pays de Montbéliard agglomeration, with 5 employees supported by volunteers. Founded in the wake of a 2016 tragedy involving a business leader named Vincent, the association's mission is incremental, case-by-case intervention rather than scaled platform delivery, and its expansion is constrained by the volunteer-led delivery model.

Name

Casques Bleus Nord Franche-Comté

Legal name

Casques Bleus Nord Franche-Comté

Website

https://casquesbleusnfc.fr

Company type

Private

Founded year

2018

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Casques Bleus Nord Franche-Comté is a French nonprofit association in Belfort that provides free, confidential 24/7 support to entrepreneurs in difficulty, combining business problem resolution with psychological first aid via a volunteer-led network of institutional partners and the APESA psychology network.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Entrepreneur Crisis Support Services

NAICS

Management Consulting Services (54161), All Other Business Support Services (561499)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300), Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro primary industry

Founder/Entrepreneur & Family Business Executive Coaching (EDABANAM)

Keywords

• Entrepreneur crisis support
• Business failure intervention
• Psychological aid services
• Volunteer business network
• Nonprofit entrepreneur assistance

Headquarters

HQ city

Belfort

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Free Support Services (Grant/Public Funding Model): The Casques Bleus Nord Franche-Comté service is entirely free and confidential for entrepreneurs. The organization is funded through public partnerships (prefecture, department, agglomeration), institutional supporters (Banque Populaire BFC), and philanthropic events (La Nuit du Bien Commun). Revenue is not generated from service fees but from grants, donations, and institutional subsidies.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Casques Bleus Nord Franche-Comté operates a free, confidential 24/7 telephone-based support service for entrepreneurs and business leaders facing business or psychological difficulties. The service mobilizes two volunteer business leaders to meet with the distressed entrepreneur and connects the case to a broader network of specialists (jurists, lawyers, experts, mandatees) and the APESA psychological support network, which provides 5 free psychology sessions.

Product overview

The Dispositif Casques Bleus NFC is a single, unified support service rather than a platform-plus-modules architecture. It provides a single telephone-based access point (07 62 68 19 77) that activates a coordinated response combining business crisis intervention (solutions for the company) and psychological support (solutions for the individual leader). The service does not offer modular add-ons or separate product tiers; it is a single integrated dispositif built around partner network mobilization and APESA psychological referral.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Dispositif Casques Bleus NFC A free, confidential 24/7 telephone-based support service for entrepreneurs and business leaders facing business or psychological difficulties. The dispositif integrates two intervention axes: business crisis resolution through a mobilized partner network (jurists, lawyers, experts, mandatees) and psychological support via the APESA network (5 free psychology sessions). Two volunteer business leaders meet with the distressed entrepreneur, and the service intervenes at the leader's request to prevent escalation of problems.

Quantifiable outcome

• 54,740 business failures per year and 180 suicides of small business owners per year represent the scale of the problem the organization addresses
• +1 more outcomes

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered core, supporting and minor.

• Préfecture du Territoire de BelfortcoreOthersPrefectural authority providing institutional support and recognition to the Casques Bleus initiative. Serves as a key government partner endorsing the organization's mission to support entrepreneurs in difficulty in the Territoire de Belfort.
• Département du Territoire de BelfortcoreOthersDepartmental council providing institutional backing and legitimacy to the organization as part of local social support infrastructure.
• Grand BelfortcoreOthersAgglomeration community supporting local economic development and entrepreneur welfare in the Belfort area.
• Pays de Montbéliard AgglomérationcoreOthersAgglomeration community covering Montbéliard area, extending the organization's geographic reach within Nord Franche-Comté.
• Assurance Maladie Territoire de BelfortsupportingOthersRegional health insurance body providing healthcare system connection for psychological support referrals and wellness programs for entrepreneurs.
• Banque Populaire Bourgogne Franche-ComtécoreOthersRegional banking partner providing financial sector expertise and funding support. Also a co-sponsor of La Nuit du Bien Commun event.
• APESA (Association d'Aides Psychologiques pour les Entrepreneurs en Souffrance Aiguë)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational network of psychological support for entrepreneurs in acute distress. Provides up to 5 free psychology sessions. Local antenna established in Territoire de Belfort since December 2017. Deployed in 39 French commercial courts with 15 more in progress. APESA forms and trains 'Sentinelles' on prevention and intervention.
• Prelude ConseilsupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerConsulting partner providing advisory and strategic support to the organization.
• Agea (Agent Général d'Assurance)supportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerInsurance agent partner contributing risk management and insurance-related expertise for entrepreneur support.
• Time SolutionssupportingImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerWebsite development partner (SIRET: 88780263500011, 5 rue Jacqueline Auriol, 90000 Belfort). Created the organization's website free of charge as a pro-bono contribution.
• Time ProdminorOthersProduction partner contributing media/production support to the organization.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• ReSource: UK charity supporting entrepreneurs experiencing mental health difficulties. International analog with a closely matched mission (founder mental health and crisis support) and is more established, providing a benchmark for scaling the French model.
• Réseau Entreprendre: Network of business leaders mentoring entrepreneurs, including those in difficult situations. Closely comparable 'business-leader volunteer' operating model that mirrors Casques Bleus' two-bénévoles approach, though focused on growth rather than crisis.
• Chambres de Commerce et d'Industrie (CCI France): Public chambers of commerce providing business advisory and crisis support services to entrepreneurs across France. Overlapping service category and target audience, but a much larger incumbent institution with broader (and less specialized) offerings.
• Initiative France: Federation of 200+ local nonprofit associations offering financing and advisory support to entrepreneurs, including those in difficulty. Comparable target audience and nonprofit structure, but focuses on creation and financing rather than psychological crisis intervention.
• France Active: National network financing and supporting social and solidarity-economy entrepreneurs, including those in financial difficulty. Comparable mission (entrepreneur resilience) and institutional grant-funded model, though tilted toward financing rather than crisis intervention.

Direct peers

• BGE (Boutiques de Gestion): Network of associations supporting business creation and development, including entrepreneurs facing difficulties. Comparable nonprofit delivery model, free advisory services, and entrepreneur target audience.
• 60 000 Rebonds: French nonprofit (created 2010) that supports entrepreneurs through business failure recovery. Highly comparable mission and target audience (entrepreneurs in distress), though it offers longer-duration post-failure support rather than upstream crisis intervention.
• APESA: National association for psychological support of entrepreneurs in acute distress. Direct functional overlap (Casques Bleus routes entrepreneurs into APESA's 5-session psychology program) and a partner of the subject organization; same national problem space.

Others

• Aide à la Création d'Entreprise (APCE / BPI France Création): State-backed resource supporting entrepreneurs including those in difficulty, via Bpifrance. Comparable target audience and free advisory offering, but a public-sector incumbent rather than a community-led nonprofit — useful for understanding alternative channels entrepreneurs might choose.

Emerging players

• TPE-PME Santé Mentale Initiative / Fondation Entreprendre: Foundations and emerging coalitions focusing on small business owner mental health in France. Mission-adjacent and likely ecosystem partners or funders for Casques Bleus, but operating more as conveners than as direct intervention providers.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/dcb-franche-comt%C3%A9

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 Casques Bleus Nord Franche-Comté