What JobYourself does

JobYourself is a Brussels-based activity cooperative (coopérative d'activités) founded in 2007 that supports aspiring entrepreneurs in Belgium through a structured test-and-launch pathway for self-employment. The organization helps unemployed individuals and CPAS (public social assistance) recipients validate business ideas while continuing to receive their existing benefits, providing business coaching, activity testing, and full back-office administration (invoicing, accounting, social-security declarations). Two parallel entities operate: JobYourself Coop for general entrepreneurship and JobYourself BatiCrea for manual trades and construction, the latter tied to Brussels' Renolution circular-construction agenda.

The cooperative employs approximately 20 staff and serves a community of around 750 entrepreneurs, with 187 jobs created in 2025. The revenue model is a contribution-based hybrid: free preparation phase (1-3 months), followed by an 18-month test phase during which the entrepreneur remits 10% of gross revenue (with a €50/month floor). JobYourself is co-financed by the European Social Fund Plus under a 2024-2027 project envelope of €1.22M total (€488K EU contribution) and partners with the Brussels regional employment agency Actiris (since 2011) and DiES for referral pipelines.

The operating stack is deliberately low-tech — built around Microsoft Forms and standard cooperative administration — with no proprietary software platform. Distribution advantage comes from privileged access to public employment-service channels rather than direct consumer marketing, and the organization's competitive position rests on its statutory recognition under Belgian cooperative law and its accumulated brand trust within the French-speaking Brussels self-employment ecosystem.

Name

JobYourself

Legal name

JobYourself SCES agréée

Website

https://jobyourself.be

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Short description

JobYourself is a Brussels-based activity cooperative founded in 2007 that supports aspiring Belgian entrepreneurs through coaching, business-activity testing, and administrative services, serving roughly 750 entrepreneurs via two entities covering general and manual trades.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Entrepreneurship Support Services

NAICS

Employment Services (5613), Employment Placement Agencies (561311)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300), Services-Employment Agencies (7361), Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Entrepreneurship & Self-Employment Transition Support (BPACAOAK)

akta.pro secondary industries

Employment & Job Readiness Support Services (BPAGAEAJ), Entrepreneurship & Small Business Workforce Programs (EDAAAOAM), Workforce Readiness, Career Pathways & Youth Employment Nonprofits (BPAGADAF)

Keywords

• Activity cooperative services
• Entrepreneurial coaching
• Self-employment support
• Social enterprise incubation
• Business activity testing

Headquarters

HQ city

Saint-gilles

HQ country

Belgium

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Cooperative contribution fees (during TEST phase): During the TEST phase (up to 18 months), entrepreneurs contribute 10% of their gross profit (turnover minus direct purchases), with a minimum monthly contribution of €50. This is the primary revenue stream sustaining the cooperative's operations. The accompaniment during the PREP phase is free of charge.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

JobYourself is a Belgian social economy organization (activity cooperative) that helps unemployed individuals in Brussels test and launch entrepreneurial projects while preserving their unemployment benefits. It provides a free PRE-TEST preparation phase (1–3 months) and a TEST phase (up to 18 months) during which entrepreneurs can legally invoice clients using the cooperative's VAT number, supported by entrepreneurial coaching, accounting, HR, and administrative services.

Product overview

JobYourself is an activity cooperative structure supporting two distinct cooperatives: JobYourself Coop (general entrepreneurship) and JobYourself BatiCrea (manual trades and construction). The organization offers two service modules: a Pre-Test/Preparation phase (1-3 months) providing coaching and business planning support, and a Test phase (up to 18 months) enabling entrepreneurs to bill clients using the cooperative's VAT number while maintaining unemployment benefits. JobYourself ASBL serves as the parent non-profit structure overseeing both cooperatives, which are legally recognized under Belgian cooperative law (SCES agréée - Société Coopérative agréée comme Entreprise Sociale).

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• JobYourself BatiCrea: Specialized entrepreneurship support program for manual trades, craftsmanship, construction, design, and green professions. BatiCrea specifically targets artisans and workers in the building sector.
• BatiCréa

Products and services

• JobYourself Prep-Test (Préparation du projet) A 1–3 month project preparation phase that offers free coaching, workshops, and group sessions to help aspiring entrepreneurs build solid business foundations including market studies, business models, customer analysis, and financial planning. Targeted at unemployed job seekers in the Brussels-Capital Region.
• JobYourself Test d'activité (Activity Test) An 18-month market-test phase that lets candidate-entrepreneurs legally invoice clients through JobYourself's VAT number while maintaining their unemployment allocations. Includes individual and group coaching, accounting, HR, and administrative services. Targeted at job seekers in Brussels testing a self-employment project.
• JobYourself BatiCrea (Manual Trades Cooperative) A specialized cooperative that supports artisans and manual-trade workers (builders, painters, decorators, green craft professionals) in testing their business activities under the same cooperative framework as the general track. Targeted at artisans and craft workers in Brussels.
• JobYourself Coop SCES agréée (Main Cooperative) The main cooperative entity (Société Coopérative agréée comme Entreprise Sociale) that hosts candidate-entrepreneurs under its VAT number while they test their activities for up to 18 months, preserving unemployment benefits. Targeted at unemployed job seekers in Brussels.

Named customers5 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• ActiriscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorActiris is the Brussels Regional Employment Service. JobYourself has been part of the Actiris Partner Network for Work (NWP) since 2011. Actiris refers unemployed individuals to JobYourself and grants the 18-month exemption from job-search obligations (formulaire DV94.5) that allows beneficiaries to preserve their unemployment allocations during the test phase.
• CPAS (Centre Public d'Action Sociale)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorCPAS (public social welfare centers) in Brussels refer social integration income (RIS) beneficiaries to JobYourself. CPAS approval is required for CPAS beneficiaries to enter the accompaniment program, and CPAS clients can continue their test phase if they obtain income replacement from CPAS during the accompaniment.
• Mutuelles (Health Insurance Funds)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorMutual insurance funds (mutuelles) in Belgium refer individuals with work incapacity benefits to JobYourself. Approval from the medical advisor (médecin-conseil) of the mutuelle is required for incapacity benefit recipients to enter the program.
• Commune de ForestminorOthersThe Forest municipality in Brussels is listed among JobYourself's supporters. The organization participates in local events in Forest (e.g., Semaine des initiatives de Forest) and has local antennas through this partnership.
• Renolution BrusselsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerRenolution is the circular economy initiative of the Brussels-Capital Region. JobYourself is connected to this ecosystem, and one of its team members (Gaëlle Francart) is charged with the Regional Circular Economy Program (PREC) linked to circulareconomy.brussels.
• DiES (Coopératives d'emploi)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerDiES is an employment cooperative that offers alternative status to independent workers, hosting entrepreneurs under employee and independent status. It is listed as a partner project of JobYourself, and JobYourself refers entrepreneurs who exit the cooperative to DiES as a post-creation structure.
• Reload Yourself (Coopérative de repreneuriat)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerReload Yourself is a cooperative focused on business takeover and revival (repreneuriat). It provides a structured, secure framework for creating and developing takeover or revival projects. It is listed as a partner project alongside JobYourself's cooperative structure.
• Lokaal Economisch Loket (LEL) / Guichet Economique LocalminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Local Economic Window (LEL) provides financial advisory services for entrepreneurs. JobYourself refers entrepreneurs to LEL for matters related to financing, subsidies, and other financial aspects of their business projects.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Regional players

• 1819.brussels: Brussels regional hub supporting entrepreneurs and project leaders through information, orientation, and partner referrals. Operates in the same Brussels entrepreneurship-support ecosystem and shares referral flows, but as a public information service rather than a cooperative accompaniment provider.
• UCM (Union des Classes Moyennes): Belgian SME and self-employed support organization offering guidance, training, and administrative services to entrepreneurs. Broader in scope than JobYourself (serving existing entrepreneurs, not just job-seekers testing activity) but comparable target audience of Belgian self-employed workers.
• Bruxelles Formation: Brussels-Capital Region's public vocational training operator offering workforce development programs to job seekers. Comparable target population (Brussels unemployed) and public-funding model, though focused on training rather than entrepreneurial testing.
• Smart Coop Belgium: Belgian cooperative providing administrative and social protection services to independent workers and freelancers. Comparable Belgian cooperative infrastructure for self-employed status but without the activity-testing coaching focus that defines JobYourself.

Direct peers

• Oxalis SCOP: French activité coopérative (SCOP) providing the same entrepreneur-accompaniment framework as JobYourself, including legal hosting, accounting, and coaching for aspiring self-employed workers in the Ain/Rhône region. Closely aligned model, different geography.
• Coopaname: Large French cooperative d'activités et d'emploi (CAE) hosting entrepreneurs under the cooperative's legal framework while they test their activity. Operates the same structural model as JobYourself (VAT invoicing under the cooperative, benefit preservation, contribution-based revenue) but at French national scale.
• DiES (Coopératives d'emploi): Belgian employment cooperative offering alternative status (employee and independent) to entrepreneurs; JobYourself refers exiting entrepreneurs to DiES as a post-creation structure. Same Belgian cooperative ecosystem, complementary rather than competing function.
• Reload Yourself: Belgian repreneuriat cooperative providing a structured framework for business takeover and revival. Listed as a JobYourself partner project within the same Brussels social-economy ecosystem; targets adjacent but overlapping entrepreneur segments.
• BGE Réseau: French national network of entrepreneurship support associations providing business creation coaching, testing, and post-creation follow-up to aspiring entrepreneurs. Comparable target population (job seekers, beneficiaries) and coaching methodology, though delivered through associations rather than a cooperative structure.
• Coopetic ARL: Smaller French coopérative d'activités hosting entrepreneurs under employee status while they develop their activity. Highly comparable operating model to JobYourself's TEST phase, with similar coaching, administrative, and VAT-invoicing services at sub-national French scale.

Market position

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles11 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 JobYourself