ESPACE K

What ESPACE K does

ESPACE K is a multi-faceted cultural venue located at 10 rue du Hohwald in Strasbourg, France, operated by the non-profit Association du Kafteur under the French loi 1901 framework. Founded in February 1993 by Jean-Luc Falbriard and supporters, the company originally performed at the Sellenick Café before relocating to the Café des Anges and establishing Le Kafteur théâtre d'humour at rue Thiergarten in September 1994. After winning a competitive bid from the City of Strasbourg in 2015, the association opened L'Espace K at the former Hall des chars on January 7, 2016, scaling operations to a 1,000 m² dual-hall venue with capacity for up to 189 people. The venue's programming is humor-led but extends to theater, music, circus, family programming, and contemporary drama, accompanied by theater workshops, weekend stages, festivals (Krismass Show, Festiv'Ateliers, ThéâtralIS), and corporate event rentals. A 'Le Kabaret Bye Bye' farewell production in 2026 will precede demolition of the current site, with a new small theatre targeted for completion by 2028.

The company generates revenue through five primary streams: ticketed performances (€17-€28 normal, reduced rates from €3 for QPV residents to €9 for school groups), annual theater workshops (€300-€430 plus €30 membership), weekend stage workshops (€75 plus membership), a €10 annual loyalty card providing €15 preferential rates, and corporate venue rentals serving clients including Eiffage, Socomec, GE Healthcare, Habitat de l'Ill, and Capital Filles. Distribution occurs through online ticketing (vostickets.fr), evening box office, administrative office, and a regional partner venue network spanning 11+ Strasbourg-area locations. The organization is sustained by 6 permanent staff (artistic direction, administration, communication, ticketing, technical), 40+ intermittents annually, and 18 volunteers, and operates under three-year conventions with Ville de Strasbourg, Région Grand Est, Collectivité Européenne d'Alsace, Spedidam, and CNM.

Espace K exhibits no proprietary technology, digital platform, or AI/ML capabilities. Marketing relies on the official website, social media (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram), email newsletter, downloadable season brochures, and earned media partnerships including France Bleu Alsace. The business is privately held as a non-profit association with no external investors, funding rounds, or M&A activity. Customer concentration is distributed across a fragmented B2C base supplemented by episodic B2B corporate rentals, with institutional subsidies constituting the primary revenue backbone under French conventionnement norms.

Name

ESPACE K

Legal name

Association du Kafteur

Website

https://espace-k.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1993

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

ESPACE K is a Strasbourg-based non-profit cultural venue and theater company operating humor-focused programming, theater workshops, and corporate event rentals across two 1,000 m² modular halls with capacity for 189 people, managed by Association du Kafteur under municipal and regional institutional conventions since 1993.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Live Performing Arts Venue

NAICS

Promoters of Performing Arts, Sports, and Similar Events with Facilities (71131), Performing Arts Companies (7111)

SIC

Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)

akta.pro primary industry

Event Operations & Venue Services (Box Office, FOH/BOH, Concessions) (MPAIAFAL)

Keywords

• Live theater performances
• Comedy and humor shows
• Theater workshops
• Corporate venue rental
• Cultural venue management

Headquarters

HQ city

Strasbourg

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. Ticket Sales: Revenue from ticket sales for performances and shows with tiered pricing (normal, reduced, special rates for students, unemployed, seniors, disabled)
2. Venue Rental: Rental of the 1000m2 modular space (2 halls, up to 189 people) for corporate events, team-building, parties, meetings
3. Theater Workshops: Annual theater workshops for children, adolescents, and adults with seasonal registration fees (300€-430€ plus 30€ membership)
4. Weekend Stages: Weekend workshops on various themes (clown, acting) at 75€ plus membership fee
5. Fidelity Card: 10€ loyalty card providing 15€ preferential rate for all shows

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

ESPACE K is a multi-faceted cultural venue in Strasbourg operating as a performance hall, theater school, and creation space. It produces and hosts ticketed live performances centered on humor, along with theater, music, circus, and young audience programming. It also runs weekly theater workshops for all ages, weekend stage workshops, a seasonal loyalty program, and offers its 1,000m2 modular space for corporate event rental.

Product overview

ESPACE K is a multi-faceted cultural venue in Strasbourg, operating as a performance hall, theater school, and creation space since 1993. The company manages its own venue (Espace K) and is run by the Le Kafteur theater company. Its offerings include: ticketed theater/comedy performances across multiple venues; structured theater workshops (Ateliers) for children, teenagers, and adults with end-of-season public presentations; annual festivals including Krismass Show, Festiv'Ateliers, and ThéâtralIS; a loyalty program (Karte de fidélité) offering preferential rates; venue rental services for corporate events; cultural outreach programs; and short-term creative residencies. The venue operates two spaces totaling 1,000 m² with capacity for up to 189 people.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Le Kafteur: The parent comedy theater company founded in 1993 by Jean-Luc Falbriard, specializing in humor and theatrical performances. Responsible for creating the Espace K venue and managing its operations.

Products and services

• Theater Performances (Humour et Théâtre) Ticketed live performances including comedy shows, musical theater, circus, contemporary music, and young audience productions presented at the venue and partner venues across Strasbourg.
• Theater Workshops (Ateliers) Structured weekly theater workshops for children (Minis 8-10, Maxis 11-14), teenagers (Ados 13-16), and adults, culminating in public performances at season's end.
• Weekend Stage Workshops (Stages) Short-duration weekend workshops on specific themes such as intergenerational clowning, textual interpretation, and improvisation for various skill levels, at 75€ plus membership fee.
• Corporate Venue Rental Modular 1,000m2 venue rental (two 500m2 halls, capacity up to 189 guests) for corporate events including year-end parties, team-building, meetings, and farewell events.
• Karte de Fidélité (Loyalty Program) Seasonal loyalty card costing 10€ providing preferential ticket pricing at 15€ per show plus reduced rates at partner venues.
• Le Kabaret Bye Bye Signature farewell cabaret performance by Le Kafteur company featuring guest artists from the past 10 years of programming, marking the venue's final production before demolition.
• Cultural Outreach Actions (Actions Culturelles) Off-site cultural programs including visits with artists, cross-workshops with neighborhood associations, adapted pricing for disadvantaged residents, and accessibility services such as audio description.

Named customers6 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

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Ville de StrasbourgcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMain institutional partner through convention de mise à disposition d'équipements and convention d'objectifs et de moyens (3-year agreements). Provides venue access and ongoing operational support.
• Région Grand EstcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegional government support for cultural activities and artistic programming.
• Collectivité Européenne d'AlsacecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDepartmental council support for cultural programming and regional artistic development.
• SpedidamcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSociety for the collection and distribution of performing artists' rights, supporting artistic creation.
• CNM (Centre National de la Musique)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational music center supporting musical programming and artistic projects.
• Tôt ou t'ArtminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAssociation providing adapted access and pricing for social and medico-social structures.
• Alsace CEminorGTM or Marketing PartnerEmployee savings committee offering reduced ticket prices to members.
• Carte EvasionminorGTM or Marketing PartnerCultural card program with discounted access to Espace K performances.
• Le Pass CultureminorGTM or Marketing PartnerFrench government cultural access program for young people to attend cultural events.
• Souffleurs d'ImagesminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAccessibility service providing live audio description for visually impaired audience members, free of charge.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves11 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Regional players

• Théâtre National de Strasbourg (TNS): National theater located in Strasbourg and a direct regional peer operating in the same city with institutional French-government backing. Differs in scale (much larger, CDN label) and repertoire (more contemporary drama than humor), but competes for the same audience and public funding.
• Points Communs (Théâtre des Louvrais / Théâtre 95): Scène nationale in Cergy-Pontoise with multi-site programming including theater, music, and young-audience productions. Comparable as a multi-faceted regional cultural venue operating its own facilities.
• La Coursive: Scène nationale in Bordeaux presenting theater, music, and dance programming. Comparable as a publicly-supported multi-disciplinary performing-arts venue serving a regional audience outside Paris.
• La Comédie de Strasbourg: Strasbourg-based theater producing classical and contemporary repertoire. A local competitor for audience share and cultural-programming partnerships in the same metropolitan market.

Direct peers

• Le Point Virgule: Long-running Parisian humor theater specializing in one-man shows, stand-up, and comedy. Highly comparable as a single-room comedy venue built around a humor-first programming identity with ticketed evening performances.
• TAPS Strasbourg: Municipal theater in Strasbourg presenting multidisciplinary programming. Listed as a partner/box-office venue for Espace K, indicating close operational overlap in the regional ticketing and programming ecosystem.
• Théâtre Trévise: Parisian theater well known for comedy and humor programming, including one-man shows and stand-up. Comparable in format (small-to-mid venue, comedy-led) and ticketed evening programming model.
• Le PréO: Cultural venue in Oberhausbergen (Strasbourg Eurométropole) that is listed as an Espace K partner/box-office venue. Operates in the same regional market with comparable performing-arts programming and audience profile.

Broad incumbents

• Le Splendid: Historic Parisian venue famous for comedy and variety productions. A broader incumbent in French-language humor entertainment, with a much larger footprint but overlapping humor-first programming philosophy.
• Comédie-Française: National institution performing classical French theater. A broader incumbent in the French live-performance sector that competes for cultural-policy attention and audience share, though at vastly greater scale.

Market position

Strengths1 record

Weaknesses1 record

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/Espace_K_Stras
• Facebookfacebook.com/Espace.K.Stras
• Instagraminstagram.com/espace_k_strasbourg
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/espace-k

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 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 ESPACE K