Fondation Pro Travail

What Fondation Pro Travail does

Fondation Pro Travail is a Swiss nonprofit foundation established in 2008 in the Canton of Vaud, dedicated to creating employment positions and reintegrating individuals who have been excluded from the labor market for at least two years. The foundation operates a 12-month work contract program serving recipients of the Revenu d'Insertion (RI) welfare benefit, combining supervised manual work with two days per week of job-search support and reintegration counseling. The program is financed primarily through an annual budget allocation from the Canton of Vaud's employment service (SDE/DGEM), reported at 1.7 million CHF in 2017, supplemented by donor support including Loterie Romande.

The foundation operates through four interconnected divisions: Protravail (the core reintegration program), Promaison (retail of dismantled and recycled building materials and household items, launched 2011), Propublics (public space maintenance including graffiti removal and urban furniture cleaning, launched 2012), and Pro Service (home repair and renovation services for individuals and businesses, launched June 2023). Service delivery is built around manual labor in recycling, disassembly, deconstruction, and public maintenance rather than proprietary technology. The foundation maintains two physical sites in Renens (headquarters) and Yverdon-les-Bains (retail showroom and operations), and reports placement rates of 25-50% depending on the year, with a 35% average annual success rate over eight years of operation.

The business model combines government grant funding with commercial revenue from work mandates negotiated with municipalities, enterprises, and public institutions, plus retail sales through Promaison stores and an online presence on Anibis. Customers include the State of Vaud's employment service, communes across Canton de Vaud, public institutions, and individual homeowners. The foundation is governed by a Conseil de Fondation chaired by Paul J. Zimmermann, with operational direction under Director Charly Chevalley. No private equity, parent company, or external investment is involved, and the entity is not publicly traded.

Name

Fondation Pro Travail

Legal name

Fondation Pro Travail

Website

https://protravail.ch

Company type

Private

Founded year

2008

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Fondation Pro Travail is a Swiss nonprofit foundation in Canton de Vaud that runs 12-month work contracts to reintegrate long-term unemployed welfare recipients, funded by the State of Vaud and operating retail (Promaison), public maintenance (Propublics), and home repair services (Pro Service).

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Social Employment and Workforce Reintegration Services

NAICS

Vocational Rehabilitation Services (6243), Vocational Rehabilitation Services (624310), Temporary Help Services (561320)

SIC

Services-Help Supply Services (7363), Services-Facilities Support Management Services (8744), Services-To Dwellings & Other Buildings (7340)

akta.pro primary industry

Digital Outplacement Platforms & Virtual Career Transition (BPACAOAL)

akta.pro secondary industry

Moving, Downsizing & Estate Organizing (HSAFAKAG)

Keywords

• Employment reintegration services
• Workforce rehabilitation programs
• Recycled building materials
• Public space maintenance
• Home repair services

Headquarters

HQ city

Renens

HQ country

Switzerland

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. State Funding - Service de l'emploi: Primary funding from the Canton of Vaud's employment service (SDE/DGEM) for the reintegration program. Budget of approximately 1.7 million CHF annually allocated by the State of Vaud. Funding is dependent on market conditions and unemployment rates.
2. Client Mandates and Work Contracts: Revenue from municipalities, enterprises, and public institutions for work mandates in deconstruction, recycling, urban furniture maintenance, and cleaning services. Promaison generates retail revenue from sales of recycled building materials and household items.
3. Donor Support: Financial support from donors and Loterie Romande (LoRo) for reintegration projects and program development including Pro Service launch.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Fondation Pro Travail delivers professional reintegration for long-term unemployed beneficiaries via 12-month work contracts that combine supervised manual work, on-the-job training, and dedicated job-search coaching. Around this social mission it operates three commercial entities: Promaison (retail of dismantled and recycled building materials and household items), Propublics (graffiti removal and urban furniture maintenance for municipalities), and Pro Service (home repairs and renovations for individuals and businesses), all of which act as work-integration platforms for participants.

Product overview

Fondation Pro Travail is a social enterprise operating as a foundation dedicated to creating jobs and professional reintegration. The organization comprises four distinct divisions: (1) Protravail - the core reintegration program offering 12-month employment contracts to long-term unemployed; (2) Promaison - a retail operation selling recycled and dismantled household items and construction materials; (3) Propublics - a public maintenance service handling graffiti removal and urban furniture care; and (4) Pro Service - a home repair and renovation service launched in 2023. The foundation operates sites in Renens and Yverdon-les-Bains, Canton of Vaud, Switzerland.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Promaison: Proximity services provider specializing in retail of dismantled and recycled parts for homes. Activities include dismantling, recycling, and valorization of building materials and household items. Operates showrooms in Renens and Yverdon-les-Bains.
• Propublics
• Pro Service

Products and services

• Protravail Reintegration Program 12-month work contracts offering professional reintegration to long-term unemployed beneficiaries (Revenu d'Insertion) referred by Canton de Vaud's ORP offices; combines supervised manual work, two-days-per-week job-search coaching, and on-the-job evaluation, leading to a work certificate for the participant's CV.
• Promaison (Recycled Building Materials Showroom) Retail sale of dismantled and recycled building materials and household items (kitchens, bathrooms, doors, windows, parquet, lighting fixtures, sinks, appliances) for homeowners and small renovation projects; operates showrooms in Yverdon-les-Bains and Renens with an online boutique and Anibis listings.
• Propublics (Public-Space Maintenance) Graffiti removal, street furniture cleaning, litter-bin maintenance, and general public-space upkeep delivered on-site for municipalities and public institutions in Canton de Vaud.
• Pro Service (Home Repair and Renovation) Home repair and renovation services for individuals and businesses, including carpentry, furniture assembly and repair, painting, locksmithing, exterior maintenance, and home adaptation for ergonomics and safety; combines professional artisans with reintegration trainees.

Quantifiable outcome

• 50% placement rate in 2017 (38 placements since program beginning)
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers4 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

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and major.

• Service de l'emploi / Direction générale de l'emploi et du marché du travail (DGEM) du Canton de VaudcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2008State employment service that provides ongoing funding, oversight, and coordination for the reintegration program. Directs ORP offices to refer eligible beneficiaries to Pro Travail. Long-standing partnership since program inception in 2008.
• Communes et Entreprises donneuses d'ordremajorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorMunicipalities and companies that serve as clients and order-givers for Pro Travail's various services (deconstruction, maintenance, cleaning). Provide work mandates and revenue streams for the foundation.
• Entreprises et Cabinets d'architecturescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCompanies and architecture firms that provide work mandates and construction projects for Pro Travail participants. Enable on-the-job demonstration of skills to potential future employers.
• Particuliers et Entreprises (ProService clients)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorIndividual homeowners and businesses that engage ProService for home repairs, renovations, and facility management services. Support the social mission while receiving professional services.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Stiftung Wendepunkt: Swiss foundation operating socio-professional integration programs for people facing exclusion from the labor market, combining sheltered employment, training, and reintegration support comparable to Fondation Pro Travail's offering.
• Stiftung Bernaville: Bern-based foundation providing vocational integration and supported employment for people with disabilities or barriers to employment, operating sheltered workshops and reintegration programs comparable to Pro Travail's model.
• ORIF: Vaud-based nonprofit providing vocational rehabilitation and professional reintegration for people with disabilities or social barriers, operating under a similar state-mandated model with workplace integration programs across multiple cantons.
• Fondation Mode d'Emploi: Neuchâtel-based social reintegration foundation offering work-based reintegration programs for long-term unemployed individuals, with a similar social-enterprise model combining state funding with commercial work mandates.

Broad incumbents

• HEKS (Hilfswerk der Evangelischen Kirchen Schweiz): Swiss humanitarian aid organization operating social integration programs including vocational reintegration for marginalized populations, with broader scope but overlapping state-contracted services across Swiss cantons.
• EMMAüs Suisse: Swiss branch of the international EMMAUS movement running social reintegration communities through resale activities, recycling, and work-based integration, sharing the work-as-integration philosophy with Fondation Pro Travail.
• Caritas Vaud: Regional branch of Caritas Switzerland providing broader social services including employment reintegration, refugee support, and social assistance in Canton de Vaud, with overlapping participant populations and state funding relationships.

Regional players

• Fondation Leenaards: Vaud-based philanthropic foundation funding social cohesion, intergenerational, and youth integration projects, sometimes co-financing programs with organizations like Pro Travail and sharing the regional social-mission landscape.
• Insertion Vaud: Vaud cantonal federation of social insertion organizations that coordinates and supports reintegration programs in the same canton, providing an umbrella network with overlapping beneficiary pools and state funding relationships.

Others

• Fondation de l'Hermitage: Swiss foundation with employment-related social programs and workforce reintegration initiatives, providing adjacent philanthropic and operational parallels in the Swiss social-employment ecosystem.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/profile.php
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/fondation-pro-travail

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Subsidiaries3 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 Fondation Pro Travail