Regroupement des aveugles et amblyopes du Montréal métropolitain (RAAMM)

What Regroupement des aveugles et amblyopes du Montréal métropolitain (RAAMM) does

RAAMM (Regroupement des aveugles et amblyopes du Montréal métropolitain) is a Montreal-based non-profit advocacy and service organization founded in 1982 that defends the rights of visually impaired persons across Greater Montréal, Laval, and Montérégie — a population it cites at more than 150,000 locally and over 300,000 in Quebec. Its work spans three intersecting tracks: direct community services for members (volunteer assistance via the Service d'aide bénévole, the Publiphone audio information line, awareness workshops, member events, and a weekly Écho du RAAMM newsletter), systemic advocacy (annual 'Coup de coeur' and 'Coup de gueule' awards, joint open letters with 60+ partner organizations, transit, housing, and payment-terminal campaigns, plus coalition work through CODDPSH and INCA), and digital accessibility expertise delivered externally to web professionals and institutions.

Its flagship technical offering is the Laboratoire de promotion de l'accessibilité du Web (labo.raamm.org), funded by a 2015 $25,000 CAD grant from Institut Nazareth et Louis-Braille, which tests web components against Quebec government accessibility standards using JAWS, NVDA, VoiceOver, and TalkBack screen readers alongside WAVE, AXE DevTools, and W3C validators. The organization also monetizes a paid 2-hour training conference, 'L'ABC de l'accessibilité du Web,' delivered in-person or remotely to educational institutions and businesses, and rents its meeting rooms.

RAAMM is funded through a combination of annual individual donations (its 2025 'Encore plus de projets' campaign targeted $25,000 CAD), membership fees, recurring government mission-based grants from SACAIS and Centraide du Grand Montréal, project-specific institutional funding (notably from CISSS de la Montérégie-Centre / INLB), and fees from training and room rental. It operates with a small staff — firmographic data lists approximately 8 employees — under President Martine Bedard and Director General Pascale Dussault, with a board that is undergoing a generational transition as longtime 'Monsieur Accessibilité' Jean-Marie D'Amour departs in 2026.

Name

Regroupement des aveugles et amblyopes du Montréal métropolitain (RAAMM)

Legal name

Regroupement des aveugles et amblyopes du Montréal métropolitain

Website

https://raamm.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1982

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

RAAMM is a Montreal-based non-profit founded in 1982 that advocates for and delivers accessibility services to visually impaired persons across Greater Montréal, while providing paid web-accessibility training, an in-house testing laboratory, and coalition-led policy advocacy.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Disability advocacy and accessibility services

NAICS

Services for the Elderly and Persons with Disabilities (624120), Services for the Elderly and Persons with Disabilities (62412), Other Individual and Family Services (624190)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYEDALAGAG

Digital Accessibility & Web/App Compliance (WCAG)

Education/Student Services & Campus Operations/Disability Services & Accessibility

SECONDARYEDALAGAC

Accessible Media Production (Alt Formats, Captioning, Audio Description)

Education/Student Services & Campus Operations/Disability Services & Accessibility

SECONDARYEDAKABAG

Accessible Curriculum & Instructional Materials Adaptation (Braille, Large Print, AAC-ready)

Education/Special Education & Learning Support Services/Inclusive Education & Mainstream Classroom Support

SECONDARYBPAAABAM

Accessibility & Special-Needs Customer Support

Business & Public Services/Administrative & Support Services (BPO, Call Centers, Back Office)/Omnichannel Customer Support (Email, Chat, Social, Messaging)

Keywords

• Disability advocacy services
• Web accessibility training
• Visual impairment support
• Nonprofit community services
• Accessibility consulting services

Headquarters

HQ city

Montréal

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Annual Fundraising Campaign: The organization conducts annual fundraising campaigns with specific monetary objectives, such as the 2025 campaign with a $25,000 target under the theme 'Encore plus de projets'. Donations are solicited from members and the public.
2. Membership Fees: The organization offers membership with associated benefits including access to services, activities, and member advantages.
3. Government Grants and Funding: The organization receives support from government bodies including Secrétariat à l'action communautaire autonome et aux initiatives sociales (SACAIS) and Centraide du Grand Montréal. Funding is also received from the CISSS de la Montérégie-Centre for specific projects like the Web accessibility conference.
4. Accessibility Training and Conference Services: The organization offers paid accessibility training conferences to Web professionals, organizations, and educational institutions. Pricing is available upon request and can be adjusted for educational institutions.
5. Room Rental: The organization offers meeting room rental services at their facility.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

RAAMM provides community advocacy and digital accessibility services for visually impaired individuals in Greater Montreal. Standalone paid offerings include the 'L'ABC de l'accessibilité du Web' training conference, awareness workshops (Ateliers d'accueil et de sensibilisation), room rental (Location de salle), and the Web Accessibility Promotion Laboratory at labo.raamm.org. Member-facing services include the Service d'aide bénévole (volunteer assistance) and the Publiphone audio information line. Advocacy campaigns include the annual 'Coup de coeur' and 'Coup de gueule' recognitions and distribution of the weekly Écho du RAAMM newsletter.

Product overview

RAAMM offers advocacy, community services, and digital accessibility services for visually impaired people in the Greater Montreal area. Core offerings include: digital accessibility services with the 'ABC de l'accessibilité du Web' conference/training; volunteer assistance services; the Publiphone audio information service; and the Laboratory of Web Accessibility Promotion (labo.raamm.org). The organization also provides awareness workshops, room rental, and advocacy initiatives including annual 'Coup de coeur' and 'Coup de gueule' awards. Services target both members with visual impairments and organizations seeking accessibility consulting.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Laboratoire de promotion de l'accessibilité du Web: A web accessibility experimentation and demonstration laboratory operated by RAAMM to test web components, recommend improvements, and promote accessible web practices for persons with visual impairments.

Products and services

• Conférence L'ABC de l'accessibilité du Web A 2-hour paid training conference introducing web accessibility principles, testing simulators, and best practices for web professionals and students, offered in-person or online in French with variable pricing and adjusted rates for educational institutions.
• Ateliers d'accueil et de sensibilisation Awareness workshops for organizations and the general public about visual impairment and accessibility needs, offered through RAAMM's public services division.
• Service d'aide bénévole Volunteer assistance service providing support to members with visual impairments for daily activities and tasks, available to RAAMM members as a named community service.
• Publiphone Audio information service allowing members to access organizational news, updates, and content by phone, delivering accessible content for visually impaired users.
• Location de salle Room rental service at the RAAMM offices (5225 rue Berri, bureau 101, Montréal) for community events and meetings.
• Laboratoire de promotion de l'accessibilité du Web Web Accessibility Promotion Laboratory at labo.raamm.org that tests and demonstrates accessible web components and promotes digital accessibility standards, including functional testing with screen readers JAWS, NVDA, VoiceOver, and TalkBack, and evaluation tools such as WAVE, AXE DevTools, Colour Contrast Analyser, W3C HTML Validator, and Web Developer Toolbar.

Quantifiable outcome

• Less than 20% of Quebec websites achieve a 'passable' accessibility rating according to RAAMM's 2019 study
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered partner, core and major.

• Ex aequopartnerStrategic or Co-development Partner · 3 June 2026LGBTQ+ organization collaborating with RAAMM on the symposium 'S'attaquer aux injustices reproductives' as part of the advisory committee.
• Institut Nazareth et Louis-Braille (INLB)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerA key strategic partner providing funding and collaboration for accessibility initiatives. INLB provided $25,000 funding for the creation of RAAMM's Web Accessibility Laboratory and has collaborated on events including the 'ABC de l'accessibilité du Web' conference. The relationship includes joint advocacy on transportation accessibility and accessibility standards.
• Centre de solidarité lesbienne de Montréal (CSL)partnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborating organization on the reproductive justice symposium, serving on the advisory committee.
• Association du Québec pour les personnes de petite taillepartnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner organization on the reproductive justice symposium advisory committee, representing people with short stature.
• AlterHérospartnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerOrganization working on disability and LGBTQ+ inclusion, participating on the symposium advisory committee.
• Action femmes et handicappartnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerOrganization advocating for women with disabilities, co-signatory of the open letter on universal accessibility and participant in the reproductive justice symposium.
• Collectif des organismes pour la défense des droits des personnes en situation de handicap (CODDPSH)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCoalition of disability rights organizations of which RAAMM is a member. CODDPSH coordinates advocacy campaigns including the postal card campaign to the Minister of Health and joint policy initiatives.
• INCA (Institut national canadien pour les aveugles)partnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerMajor blindness organization referenced for the AdaptAction support group program and collaborative work on accessibility issues including audible transit announcements and accessible housing.
• Association des usagers du transport adapté de Longueuil (AUTAL)partnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerTransit advocacy organization collaborating with RAAMM on issues of transportation accessibility, particularly regarding Braille signage removal at Longueuil terminal.
• Canal M (Diffusion bm Étienne)partnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerRadio station broadcasting the 'Y voir clair' show where RAAMM President Martine Bedard and members appear to discuss visual impairment topics, reaching a wider audience for awareness and education.
• MÉMO-QC (Mouvement pour l'équité et la mobilité par l'optimisme)partnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-signatory of the joint open letter on universal accessibility in housing, representing mobility and equity advocates.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• CNIB Foundation (Canadian National Institute for the Blind): Canada's largest blindness and vision-loss services organization; operates rehabilitation, advocacy, and accessibility programs across the country. RAAMM is a local Quebec counterpart already collaborating with CNIB/INCA on accessible transit and housing.
• MAB-Mackay Rehabilitation Centre: Montreal-based rehabilitation center serving children and adults with visual impairments and motor disabilities. Comparable Quebec institution offering direct services plus accessibility expertise in a regional footprint overlapping RAAMM's.
• Société Logique: Quebec-based nonprofit specializing in universal design consulting, accessibility audits, and training for built environments and digital interfaces. Directly overlaps with RAAMM's accessibility-training and advocacy work for organizations.
• Rick Hansen Foundation: Canadian foundation focused on accessibility and inclusion, with an accessibility certification program for buildings and spaces. Comparable Canadian accessibility advocacy, awareness, and certification footprint to RAAMM.
• Institut Nazareth et Louis-Braille (INLB): CISSS-affiliated Quebec rehabilitation center for the visually impaired; provided the $25,000 grant that seeded RAAMM's Web Accessibility Laboratory and co-funds RAAMM's accessibility conference. Closely aligned mandate and geography.
• WebAIM: Utah-based nonprofit providing world-leading web accessibility training, evaluation tools (WAVE), and resources. Closely comparable to RAAMM's Web Accessibility Laboratory and 'ABC de l'accessibilité du Web' conference, serving web professionals globally.
• Association québécoise pour l'intégration sociale (AQIS): Quebec advocacy organization promoting social participation and rights of people with intellectual disabilities and their families. Comparable nonprofit advocacy model operating in the same provincial accessibility ecosystem.
• AlterHéros: Quebec nonprofit at the intersection of disability and LGBTQ+ inclusion; a documented RAAMM partner on the 'S'attaquer aux injustices reproductives' symposium. Comparable advocacy and community-education orientation.

Others

• Office des personnes handicapées du Québec (OPHQ): Quebec government agency coordinating disability policy and funding that RAAMM and similar organizations depend on. Acts as a funder, convener, and policy counterpart rather than a direct competitor.

Broad incumbents

• Level Access: US-based commercial enterprise-scale digital accessibility platform offering enterprise audits, training, and certification. Represents the for-profit, scaled alternative to RAAMM's nonprofit accessibility training for web professionals and organizations.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/RAAMM_mtl
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@regroupementdesaveugleseta8900
• Facebookfacebook.com/RAAMM.mtl
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/raamm
• Instagraminstagram.com/raamm.mtl/?igshi=MzRIODBiNWFIZA

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Regroupement des aveugles et amblyopes du Montréal métropolitain (RAAMM)