Unite

Visits to workshops, meetings... Getting to know each other is essential to exchanging and sharing ideas on the subjects that occupy or preoccupy EPVs. Given their great diversity, ranging from one-man craft workshops to mid-sized companies, the EPV base represents a cross-section of the French economy and its difficulties, particularly when it comes to passing on know-how. But being an EPV is above all a strength. France's economic fabric can count on these craft and industrial companies to master the exceptional skills that contribute to our country's brand image. France is one of the few countries in the world to pursue an active policy of preserving and developing arts and crafts and living heritage. It's important to remember that 80% of companies with the Entreprise du Patrimoine Vivant label export. And for 16% of them, international markets account for the majority of their business.

How can you structure and perform better? Réseau Excellence offers collective development tools for companies, focusing on a variety of themes:

• training, with the preservation and transmission of know-how, particularly for "orphan" professions
  
• CSR, as a virtuous growth lever (see below)
  
• financing adapted to the production and sales cycle of EPVs, particularly for intangible investments
  
• support for international development, a major challenge for EPVs
  
• adapting technical standards to the specific characteristics of companies that are often more than a century old
  
• specific taxation for EPVs, and possible tax credits,
  
• AI and new technologies, at the service of creativity and creation
  
• etc.

The aim of Réseau Excellence is to promote the label and the companies that hold it, in close collaboration with the certifying body, and to speak with one voice to the government, members of parliament, local authorities and other organizations. Art and living heritage crafts are essential to the upkeep of our built heritage, but they also feed certain industrial sectors such as fashion and luxury goods. In addition to the well-known major groups, this sector benefits from the know-how and creativity of a network of workshops and subcontractors capable of creating exceptional pieces. While the contribution of these trades to our country's economy is undeniable, we must not overlook the fact that the companies employing them are often fragile, modest in size and sometimes struggle to recruit qualified personnel, even though human capital, even more than materials, represents a major share of the added value produced. The smallest among them - and there are many of them - are also finding it increasingly difficult to position themselves in an increasingly competitive market. It's against this backdrop that public support schemes such as the "Entreprise du Patrimoine Vivant" (EPV) scheme come into their own, and must be promoted to all sectors of the public.