What profawo does

profawo is a Swiss non-profit association (Verein) founded in 1996 in Zürich (now headquartered in Bern) that delivers employer-funded work-life balance services across Switzerland. The organization operates three integrated sub-brands: kids & co, which runs a directly-operated network of 19 Kita (daycare) facilities and provides nanny placement, emergency nanny (Notnanny), and holiday programs for children aged 0-12; care & co, which provides counselling, home relief, and care management for employees caring for elderly or disabled relatives; and the core profawo platform, which offers individual and corporate work-life consulting, Work-Life Sessions, and a diagnostic toolkit (Corporate Care Survey, Corporate Care Check, Careguides, Care Visuals).

profawo operates a B2B membership model in which Swiss employers join as corporate members (currently ~250 companies) to provide their workforce — numbering roughly 215,000 employees — with access to the full service portfolio. Members access consulting and care services free of charge or at preferential rates (Care & co: first two hours free, CHF 150/h thereafter), while non-members are billed at CHF 180/h. The organization complements memberships with direct childcare operations revenue from Kita placements and holiday programs. Technology infrastructure consists of the profawo.ch corporate site, kidsco.profawo.ch, careco.profawo.ch, and the Nanny & Notnanny mobile app, supported by HubSpot CRM, Payrexx payment processing, and Google Analytics.

The organization employs more than 400 fixed staff (FTE) across five regional offices in Bern, Zürich, Basel, Lausanne, and Ticino, delivers services in German, French, English, and Italian, and reports annual revenue of more than CHF 21 million. Its customer base spans financial services (UBS, J.P. Morgan, Swiss Re, Swiss Life), insurance, technology (Google), transportation (SBB, Swiss Post), healthcare, and education. profawo is led by Managing Director Sandra Gurtner-Oesch and is membership-funded rather than equity-backed; no parent company, private equity, or venture capital investment is disclosed.

Name

profawo

Legal name

profawo

Website

https://profawo.ch

Company type

Private

Founded year

1996

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

profawo is a Swiss non-profit association that provides employer-funded work-life balance services — childcare Kitas, eldercare counselling, and work-life consulting — to 250+ Swiss corporate members covering roughly 215,000 employees across German, French, English, and Italian-speaking regions.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Corporate Work-Life Balance & Family Care Services

NAICS

Other Individual and Family Services (624190)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300), Services-Management Services (8741)

akta.pro primary industry

Family Caregiver Support, Training & Coaching (HLADAGAK)

akta.pro secondary industries

Family Caregiver Relief & Coaching (Respite-Integrated) (HSABAGAJ), Mother’s Helper + Homework/Activity Assistance (HSAAAGAF)

Keywords

• Corporate childcare services
• Work-life balance consulting
• Family caregiver support
• Employee daycare network
• Employer work-care benefits

Headquarters

HQ city

Bern

HQ country

Switzerland

HQ region

Europe

Offices5 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Corporate Membership Fees: Companies pay membership fees to join profawo and provide work-life services to their employees. Members receive access to all services including consultations, childcare solutions, and caregiver support at preferential or free rates for employees.
2. Childcare Services Revenue: Revenue from Kita (daycare) operations, nanny placement services, and holiday program fees charged to member companies and parents.
3. Consulting Services: Work-Life Beratung (consulting) fees charged at CHF 180/h for non-member companies. Member companies receive these services free for employees.
4. Care & co Services: Care management and home relief services. Free first two hours for member company employees, then CHF 150/h. Non-members pay CHF 180/h.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

profawo is a Swiss non-profit association providing work-life balance services through a B2B corporate membership model. Companies pay annual membership fees so their employees can access kids & co childcare (19 Kita facilities, nanny and emergency nanny placement, holiday programs for children 0–12) and care & co caregiver support (counselling, home relief services, care management for relatives). profawo also offers work-life consulting, corporate daycare (Firmenkita) operational support, and educational sessions, delivered across Switzerland in German, French, English, and Italian.

Product overview

profawo operates as a non-profit association (Verein) focused on work-life balance and family-care compatibility. The organization consists of three interconnected sub-brands: (1) kids & co operates 19 company-owned and partner daycare centers across Switzerland, provides nanny placement services including emergency nannies, and offers holiday care programs for children aged 0-12; (2) care & co delivers counselling, home relief, and care management services for employees caring for relatives; and (3) profawo (core) provides work-life consultancy services, corporate daycare support, and workplace tools (Corporate Care Survey, Corporate Care Check, Care Visuals, Careguides). Services are offered in German, French, English, and Italian. Companies become members to provide these benefits to their employees, with 250 member companies currently served. The organization was founded in 1996 as Childcare Service Zürich and now employs over 400 staff.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• kids & co: Brand for professional, trustworthy, and individual childcare services in Switzerland, including Kitas, nanny services, emergency nanny, and holiday programs for children aged 0-12 years. Operates 19 daycare centers nationwide.
• care & co

Products and services

• kids & co Childcare sub-brand operating 19 daycares (Kitas) across Switzerland, offering nanny placement and emergency-nanny (Notnanny) services, holiday care programs, and online parenting sessions for children aged 0–12. Targeted at working parents of member companies and the broader Swiss public.
• care & co Sub-brand providing counselling, home relief services, and care management for employees caring for relatives, delivered across Switzerland by care consultants. Targeted at family caregivers, working employees with eldercare responsibilities, and HR/benefits buyers at member companies.
• Work-Life Beratung (Individual/MA) Individual counselling on work-life balance topics for employees, available in German, French, English, and Italian across Switzerland and border regions. Free for employees of member companies; CHF 180/h for non-members.
• Work-Life Beratung (Company/Firma) Corporate consultancy helping employers develop or improve their employee support programs for work-life balance, including assessment of current offerings, program design, and implementation support. Targeted at HR and senior leadership at Swiss employers.
• Work-Life Sessions Brief knowledge sessions during lunch breaks covering topics such as family finances, organization, and stress management. Free for employees of member companies.
• Firmenkita (Company Daycare) Support service for companies to analyze, evaluate, or operate company-owned daycare facilities, including full operational management and qualified staffing. Targeted at Swiss employers seeking to provide in-house childcare.

Quantifiable outcome

• 215,000 employees served at member companies
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers18 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• W4 AGminorOthersW4 AG in Zürich provided the concept, design, and implementation of profawo's website. This is a vendor relationship for website development and maintenance services.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• ComPsych Corporation: World's largest provider of employee assistance programs (EAP) and work-life services, serving more than 50,000 organizations. Comparable to profawo's corporate consulting and caregiver support component but lacks physical childcare infrastructure.
• TELUS Health (formerly LifeWorks): Global employee assistance, mental health, and work-life services provider serving large multinational employers. Overlaps with profawo's consulting, counseling, and caregiver support offerings but operates at much larger scale and primarily via digital channels rather than physical Kitas.
• Workplace Options: Global provider of employee well-being, work-life, and EAP services to multinational employers in over 200 countries. Comparable in target buyer and counseling/consulting portfolio but does not operate owned childcare facilities.
• Optum (UnitedHealth Group): Large diversified health services and employee assistance provider offering EAP, behavioral health, and work-life resources to U.S. employers. Overlaps with profawo's caregiver support and counseling streams at much larger scale.

Regional players

• Carers UK: UK charity supporting family caregivers with information, advocacy, and services. Highly comparable in mission and caregiver-support focus to profawo's care & co but operates in the UK rather than Switzerland and lacks the corporate membership GTM motion.
• Aide et Soins à domicile Suisse: Swiss national association coordinating home care and family support services across cantons. Comparable in Swiss footprint and home-based eldercare delivery model but focused on medical home care rather than employer-sponsored work-life services.

Direct peers

• globegarden (Elternclub Genossenschaft): Major Swiss Kita operator providing employer-supported and corporate childcare services across multiple cantons. Direct in-country competitor to kids & co for corporate Kita contracts and nursery placements in Switzerland.
• pme Familienservice GmbH: Germany's leading provider of corporate work-life balance and family services, operating a near-identical B2B membership model with childcare, eldercare counseling, and consulting offerings for employer clients. Direct comparable in business model, service mix, and target buyer (HR decision-makers at large enterprises).
• Bright Horizons Family Solutions Inc. Global provider of employer-sponsored childcare, early education, and work-life services operating hundreds of centers and serving millions of families worldwide. Closest large-scale analogue to profawo's kids & co Kita network plus corporate work-life consulting bundle.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/profawo
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/profawo
• Instagraminstagram.com/kidsco_kitas

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Subsidiaries2 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 profawo