The CMA CGM Foundation launches a social incubator in Marseille

The CMA CGM Foundation firmly believes that equal opportunity is crucial in allowing all talented people to flourish and make the most of themselves, and has made education for all its priority. Today it launches Le Phare, its social incubator to encourage the creation of businesses with a social purpose in this area.

The selected applicants will present innovative entrepreneurial projects that address the challenges of children from underprivileged areas dropping out of school, unemployed young people with difficulty accessing needed training, and economic and socio-cultural barriers that prevent vulnerable members of society joining the workforce. 

In keeping with its priority theme of education for all, the CMA CGM Foundation has decided to set up its social incubator in L’Epopée, a unique 12,000 m2 educational and social innovation village that will bring together dozens of social enterprises in the heart of the northern districts of Marseille.  

The selected entrepreneurs – who will be able to work five days a week in the CMA CGM Foundation’s coworking space – will benefit from permanent exchanges with other entrepreneurs, as well as the region’s ecosystem of associations. This space will therefore help to accelerate their development and provide a breeding ground for ideas.  

Le Phare and the start-ups welcomed will also be able to draw on the expertise of ZEBOX, the start-up incubator and accelerator founded by CMA CGM, and Le Carburateur, the entrepreneurial hub also located in the northern districts of Marseille. These two structures will be involved in project sourcing and will use their expertise to support entrepreneurs.  

The future entrepreneurs selected will benefit for a period of six months from a free 100-hour mentoring and support program. 

These services will be provided primarily by employees of the CMA CGM Group. As part of the Group’s skills mentoring program, they will provide their skills in the various areas of entrepreneurship such as project management, marketing, communications, accounting and legal.  

Depending on the entrepreneurs’ background and experience, this support will be bespoke, within a relationship of mutual involvement, trust and proximity.

This direct approach will enable future entrepreneurs to establish a close understanding of the realities experienced by experts and gain a firm grasp of the business’s logic.

Tanya Saadé Zeenny, President of the CMA CGM Foundation, comments: “By means of its social incubator, the CMA CGM Foundation is extending its commitment to supporting education to help children and young people to carve out a place for themselves in the world of tomorrow. This project also draws on the CMA CGM Group’s entrepreneurial know-how to support the creation of long-term economic activities concerning projects with a significant social impact. Located in the heart of L’Epopée in Marseille, Le Phare will contribute directly to the dynamism of the region’s social and solidarity-based economy.”