What Saisons Zéro does

Saisons Zéro is a French non-profit association (loi 1901) founded in 2019 that operates the 6,500 m² former Monastère des Clarisses in Roubaix under a transient-occupation concession awarded by the City of Roubaix. Following the September 2024 transfer of management from architecture association Zerm, the Association Saisons Zéro now runs the site as a collective experiment in low-tech, low-energy adaptive reuse of a 19th-century heritage building. The association's core product surface is three integrated service lines: coworking offices and workshops (Bureaux et Ateliers) in former sisters' chambers and ouvroir, housing 29+ project holders; the Auberge des Saisons, a 14-bed low-tech hostel in canopy/thermal-box beds priced at €24-28/night plus a €0.88 tourist tax; and event privatization (Privatisation) of the 1874 Chapel of the Holy Trinity, La Halle, La Petite Halle, and the 500+ m² Cour de Récré, available seven days a week, 8:00 to midnight. A materials donation and partnership program (Dons et Partenariats) supports ongoing renovation through circular-economy contributions.

The underlying technology is explicitly low-tech and experimental rather than digital: thermal-box canopy beds that allow comfortable sleep in an uninsulated heritage building while minimising heating energy; a deployable canvas structure in the chapel designed by Brussels-based Rotor collective to reduce heated air volume; and a systematic reclaimed-materials approach to fit-out. Distribution is entirely direct (email, phone, and a downloadable application form) with no app, online booking engine, or e-commerce. Marketing is light-touch: the website, Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn profiles, plus co-branded open visits with the Office de Tourisme de Roubaix and visibility through institutional partners including the City of Roubaix, ANCT, and Lille Métropole (MEL).

The business model is hybrid non-profit: recurring monthly coworking subscriptions, pay-as-you-go auberge stays, custom-quoted event rentals, and grants/donations from public bodies and material partners. Customers are highly diversified across project-holder types (artisans, environmental associations, artists, freelancers, micro-businesses) and event clients (corporate teams, cultural organisations, film productions). The 6-person core team (Juliette Barchon, Amélie Busatto, Guillermo Ibañez, Anne-France Montoya, Nicolas Quenson, Mateo Thiery) operates the site collaboratively with the occupant community through a Conseil de vie des occupant·e·s.

Name

Saisons Zéro

Legal name

Association Saisons Zéro

Website

https://saisonszero.fr

Company type

Private

Founded year

2019

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Saisons Zéro is a Roubaix-based non-profit association that operates a 6,500 m² former 19th-century monastery as a low-tech coworking space, 14-bed hostel, and event venue, serving 29+ occupant organisations, group travellers, and event clients under a City of Roubaix concession.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Heritage Building Reuse & Coworking

NAICS

Rooming and Boarding Houses, Dormitories, and Workers' Camps (72131), Services to Buildings and Dwellings (5617)

SIC

Hotels, Rooming Houses, Camps & Other Lodging Places (7000)

akta.pro primary industry

Independent Budget & Limited-Service Hotels (THAGABAN)

Keywords

• Co-working spaces
• Heritage building reuse
• Hostel accommodation
• Event venue rental
• Transitional occupation

Headquarters

HQ city

Roubaix

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Infrastructure, Others, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Office and Workshop Space Rental: Monthly rental of private offices (approximately 10 m² rooms, former sisters' chambers) and workshops to project holders including associations, businesses, artisans, and freelancers. Includes access to shared amenities (meeting rooms, kitchen, garden, server).
2. Auberge (Hostel) Accommodation: Nightly rental of former Clarisse sisters' chambers converted into low-tech hostel accommodation. 9 single beds and 5 double beds in canopy-style rooms. Minimum two-night stays for groups and professionals.
3. Event Privatization: Rental of iconic spaces including the 1874 Chapel of the Holy Trinity, the Petite Halle (with stage and technical rails), La Halle (large vaulted exhibition space), La Cour de Récré (500+ m² outdoor courtyard), and the Clarissa Chapel for meetings, seminars, concerts, receptions, and film shoots.
4. Donations and Material Partnerships: Accepts donations of materials (textiles, tarps, insulation, wood, equipment) and material partnerships with businesses looking to participate in circular economy and zero-waste initiatives. These donations support ongoing renovation work.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Saisons Zéro operates a 6,500 m² former 19th-century monastery (Monastère des Clarisses) in Roubaix as a transitional occupation site delivering three interconnected services: coworking offices and workshops (Bureaux et Ateliers) for project holders, a low-tech hostel (Auberge) with 14 canopy beds testing energy-efficient overnight comfort, and event venue privatization across the 1874 Chapel, La Halle, La Petite Halle, and a 500+ m² courtyard. The project also runs a material donation program supporting ongoing circular economy renovation activities.

Product overview

Saisons Zéro is a transitional occupation project managing the 6,500m2 former Monastère des Clarisses in Roubaix, France. The offering consists of three interconnected services: (1) Coworking spaces (Bureaux et Ateliers) providing private offices and workspaces to artisans, associations, and freelancers; (2) Auberge, a low-tech hostel with 14 canopy beds for overnight stays testing energy-efficient heritage sleeping solutions; and (3) Event privatization (Privatisation) of iconic spaces including the 1874 chapel, halls, and courtyards for professional and cultural events. The project focuses on ecological transition, circular economy, and zero-waste practices, with a materials donation program supporting ongoing renovations.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Bureaux et Ateliers (Coworking Spaces) Shared and private workspaces in the former monastery, including approximately 10 m² rooms on the first floor (former sisters' chambers), a 48 m² ground-floor space (former workroom), and 17 m² rooms with water points. Open to associations, businesses, artisans, and freelancers via open application. Includes 7-day access (7:00–21:00), Wi-Fi, two shared meeting rooms, collective kitchen, dining/lounge area, cloister garden, internal server, conditional DIY workshop access, and add-on auberge accommodation bookings. Pricing not publicly disclosed.
• Auberge des Saisons (Low-Tech Hostel) Low-tech hostel in the former Clarisse sisters' chambers featuring 9 single and 5 double canopy beds (Lits à baldaquin) functioning as thermal boxes, reducing heating energy needs in the uninsulated heritage building. Shared bathrooms (2 showers, 3 toilets), shared equipped kitchen, and collective dining room. Groups and professionals only (minimum 2-night stay; individual bookings not accepted). Standard rate €28/night/person; winter rate €24/night/person (November–March); mandatory tourist tax €0.88/night/person; groups of 14+ receive custom quotes.
• Privatisation d'Événements (Event Venue Rental) Event space rental across the 6,500 m² former Monastère des Clarisses complex, including La Chapelle (1874 Chapel of the Holy Trinity with Gothic details), La Chapelle des Clarisses, La Halle (large vaulted brick space), La Petite Halle (with stage and technical rails), and La Cour de Récré (500+ m² outdoor courtyard with covered préau, wooden tables and benches, and buvette). Hosts meetings, seminars, concerts, receptions, film shoots, and private events. Available Monday–Sunday, 8:00–midnight. Custom quote-based pricing.
• Dons et Partenariats (Material Donation Program) Material donation program accepting textiles, tarps, insulation materials, wooden beams, partitions, and equipment from businesses and individuals to support ongoing renovation works and circular economy/zero-waste initiatives at the site.

Named customers16 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

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• Ville de RoubaixcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019City of Roubaix launched the 2019 call for proposals for transient occupation of the former Monastery of the Clarisse Sisters. The city provides ongoing support including funding for norm compliance works and participation in shared governance of the project. Roubaix has promoted sustainable and zero-waste culture for over 10 years.
• ZermcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerArchitecture and urbanism association that developed and piloted the Saisons Zéro project from 2019-2024. In September 2024, Zerm transmitted project management to the newly formed Association Saisons Zéro. Zerm continues as an occupant in the building.
• Yes We CampcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAssociation collaborating with Zerm on the Saisons Zéro project from 2019-2024. Yes We Camp is a recognized partner in transient occupation and alternative heritage reuse projects, with experience across France.
• ANCT (Agence Nationale de la Cohésion des Territoires)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFrench National Agency for Territorial Cohesion supports the project as a partner, providing national-level backing for the transient occupation and heritage reuse initiative.
• MEL (Lille Métropole)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLille Métropole is a partner supporting the Saisons Zéro project, providing metropolitan-level coordination and resources for the heritage reuse and ecological transition initiative.
• Office de Tourisme de RoubaixminorGTM or Marketing PartnerPartners with Saisons Zéro to organize regular open visits accessible to all, providing tourism visibility and community access to the heritage site.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Yes We Camp: French association that co-managed the Saisons Zéro site from 2019-2024 with Zerm. Operates similar transient occupation and heritage reuse projects across France, including camping and third-place activations. Most direct operational counterpart.
• La Friche la Belle de Mai: Marseille cultural hub in a former tobacco factory offering coworking, event venues, restaurants, artist residencies, and educational programs. Long-running example of cultural-entrepreneurial reuse of abandoned industrial heritage comparable in scale and mission.
• La Recyclerie: Paris cooperative eco-venue set in a former railway station combining café-bar, coworking, urban gardening, and zero-waste programming. Comparable cultural/transitional occupation format focused on ecological transition and community activation.
• Zerm: Architecture and urbanism association that originated and managed the Saisons Zéro project 2019-2024. Continues as an occupant. Works on similar adaptive reuse, urban transition, and architectural experimentation projects across Hauts-de-France and beyond.
• Generator Hostels: Design-led European hostel brand with properties in distinctive buildings across major cities. Offers shared accommodations, social/workspace areas, food and drink venues, and event bookings — directly comparable to Saisons Zéro's Auberge des Saisons on group lodging model.
• Halle Tropisme: Montpellier-based cultural and creative industries hub housed in a former industrial building. Combines coworking, event venues, food/drink, and residencies in a transitional occupation model directly comparable to Saisons Zéro's mix.

Broad incumbents

• Le CENTQUATRE-PARIS: Major Paris public cultural incubator in a 19th-century former municipal funeral home offering workspaces, event venues, residencies, restaurants, and shops. Larger institutional parallel to Saisons Zéro's adaptive reuse and cultural programming combination.
• Fédération Unie des Auberges de Jeunesse (HI France): French Hostelling International network operating shared-facility, group-friendly hostels across France. Direct structural parallel to Saisons Zéro's auberge in shared-kitchen, multi-bed, group-traveler lodging model, though at much greater scale and established institutional footprint.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/saisonszero
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/saisons-z%C3%A9ro-zerm
• Instagraminstagram.com/saisonszero

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 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 Saisons Zéro