What Les Beaux Jours does

Les Beaux Jours is a French social innovation agency founded in 2017 by brothers Julien Bottriaux (social innovation consultant) and Rémi Bottriaux (service designer), headquartered in Paris with a second office in Lille. The firm applies a proprietary four-stage "Design Social Method" (immersion, co-construction, prototyping, experimentation) to develop solutions with, rather than for, vulnerable populations including EHPAD residents, people with disabilities, homeless individuals, the elderly, and youth. It operates as a cooperative-hosted entity within CAE CLARA and today comprises a four-person core team (two founders, a project manager, and a sociologist/social innovation consultant).

The agency's service offering comprises three interconnected lines: (1) "Démarches d'innovation sociale par le design" — long-form social design mandates; (2) "Séminaires collaboratifs" — bespoke participatory workshops and seminars; and (3) "Formation" — professional training on social innovation and collective intelligence methods. Its primary customers are ESMS establishments, local and regional governments (e.g., Ville d'Arras, Grand Poitiers, CUD Dunkerque), and social-sector associations (UNAPEI 92, Nexem, Dialogue & Solidarité), with projects often funded through public bodies such as CNSA, ANCT, and Banque des Territoires. Delivery is co-animated with strategic partners including CREAI IDF, Itinéraire Bis, and Plan 9.

Les Beaux Jours generates revenue through project-based professional services engagements rather than standardized product pricing; no pricing or revenue figures are publicly disclosed. The go-to-market is sales-led, combining direct engagement with institutional buyers, public tenders, and referrals from the social innovation ecosystem. Geographic operations are concentrated in France across Île-de-France, Hauts-de-France, Seine-Saint-Denis, Grand Poitiers, Arras, and Dunkerque.

Name

Les Beaux Jours

Legal name

Les Beaux Jours

Website

https://les-beaux-jours.fr

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Les Beaux Jours is a Paris-based social innovation agency that uses a four-stage design methodology to co-create solutions with vulnerable populations, serving ESMS establishments, local governments, and social-sector associations across France.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Paris

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Social Innovation Consulting Services: Revenue appears to be generated through consulting engagements with social sector institutions, healthcare organizations, and public sector entities. Projects are funded by public institutions (CNSA, ANCT, Banque des territoires) and association clients.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Les Beaux Jours is a social innovation agency that delivers participatory design consulting services to ESMS establishments, local governments, associations, and public institutions across France. Its core offering is a four-stage Design Social method (immersion, co-construction, prototyping, experimentation) that places vulnerable populations (EHPAD residents, people with disabilities, homeless persons, elderly, youth) at the center of solution design. Complementary offerings include collaborative seminar facilitation and professional training on social innovation and collective intelligence methods.

Product overview

Les Beaux Jours is an agency specializing in social innovation and inclusive design, founded in 2017 by two brothers: Julien Bottriaux (social innovation consultant) and Rémi Bottriaux (service designer). The agency offers three interconnected service offerings: (1) Démarches d'innovation sociale par le design – a four-stage social design methodology (immersion, co-construction, prototyping, experimentation) for creating solutions with affected persons; (2) Séminaires collaboratifs – collaborative seminars on custom participatory workshops for teams, networks, and territorial stakeholders; and (3) Formation – professional training combining theoretical inputs with practical situations on social innovation methods and collective intelligence. The agency works primarily with ESMS (social and medico-social establishments), local authorities, associations, and public institutions across France.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Démarches d'innovation sociale par le design Social innovation methodology services based on a four-stage design process (immersion, co-construction, prototyping, experimentation) that creates solutions with affected persons rather than for them. Targeted at ESMS institutions, local governments, associations, and public bodies seeking to transform services and policies through participatory approaches with vulnerable populations.
• Séminaires collaboratifs Custom collaborative seminar and participatory workshop services for teams, networks, and territorial stakeholders, creating spaces for listening, trust, and cooperation to design shared directions. For teams, collectives, networks, and territorial actors.
• Formation (Training) Professional training combining theoretical inputs with concrete situations, teaching social innovation and inclusive design methods as well as collective intelligence techniques. For professionals seeking to become actors of change in their organizations.

Quantifiable outcome

• 35 co-designed ideas in EHPAD project with 3 establishments
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers8 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

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• CLARA (Coopérative de Liaison des Activités et des Ressources Artistiques)coreOthersLes Beaux Jours is hosted within CLARA, a cooperative of activities and employment specialized in culture, creative engineering, and artistic professions. This cooperative structure enables approximately 150 entrepreneurs to develop their activities collectively and collaborate on innovative economic projects.
• CREAI IDFcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCentre régional d'Études d'Actions et d'Informations en faveur des personnes en situation de vulnérabilité en Île-de-France. CREAI IDF co-animates projects with Les Beaux Jours, including the associative project co-construction with UNAPEI 92 and support for ESMS transformation toward inclusive approaches.
• Itinéraire BiscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDesign agency serving the general interest. Itinéraire Bis co-animates projects with Les Beaux Jours including the citizenship innovation project in 3 EHPADs of Seine-Saint-Denis, the social innovation project with connected social centers of MEL, and the PIPPA project with Nexem.
• Plan 9coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollectif de recherche croisant art et sciences pour lutter contre les inégalités et les discriminations. Plan 9 collaborates with Les Beaux Jours on projects including the Deuilothèque (grief support resources) and the EHPAD citizenship innovation project.
• Design Territoire RelationsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerDesigners and facilitators serving participatory dynamics and territorialized projects. Regular collaborator within the extended network of experts.
• Esopa ProductionsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCoopérative d'urbanisme culturel. Regular collaborator within the extended expert network.
• Paul HalléminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSociologist and facilitator of participatory and formative approaches. Regular collaborator within the extended expert network.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Designers+: Service design agency with significant public-interest and social-sector practice in France; competes for similar participatory-design mandates from associations and local authorities.
• Bruit de Frigo: Social design studio specialized in transitions, commons, and citizen participation; comparable in its use of participatory co-construction and its focus on vulnerable or marginalized populations.
• La 27e Région: Pioneering French lab that applies design and participatory methods to public-policy innovation in regional governments; competes for similar municipal and public-sector mandates and shares the design-for-public-interest positioning.
• 21 (L'agence qui transforme): Cooperative design agency working with public and social-sector clients on service design and policy transformation; operates with a comparable cooperative ethos and targets overlapping ESMS, government, and association buyers.
• Itinéraire Bis: French design cooperative serving the general interest; explicitly co-animates projects with Les Beaux Jours (EHPAD citizenship, PIPPA, MEL connected social centers), making it the closest operating peer in terms of methodology, clients, and team structure.
• Plan 9: Research collective crossing art and sciences to fight inequalities and discrimination; already a strategic co-development partner (Deuilothèque, EHPAD citizenship) and operates in the same vulnerable-population niche.

Emerging players

• Topos: Social design studio working with territories and associations on participatory projects; comparable in approach but typically focused on regional and rural contexts rather than ESMS-specific engagements.
• Eficiens: Consultancy combining CSR, social innovation, and inclusive design for public and associative clients; addresses an adjacent slice of the same buyer base with a stronger evaluation and impact-measurement tilt.
• Res Publica: Social innovation consultancy advising public and associative actors on participation and inclusion projects; overlaps with Les Beaux Jours in methodology and buyer profile but with a more consulting-oriented delivery model.
• Oui Publique: Public-interest design agency supporting public services and associations in user-centered transformation; competes for similar mandates and shares the design-led social innovation methodology.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@lesbeauxjours_inno_sociale
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/les-beaux-jours-innovation-sociale

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 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 Les Beaux Jours