The MIN of Toulouse opens an incubator of 45 companies
Posted Feb 22 2022 at 15:46
The Market of National Interest (MIN) of Toulouse innovates by granting a business incubator which welcomes 45 companies in various fields. In 2017, Toulouse Métropole had awarded the operation of the wholesale market for 22 years to the Lumin company, 51% owned by Semmaris of the Rungis market and 44% by La Poste Immo, with the mission of relaunching the MIN which was accumulating the deficits and to build a logistics center for deliveries in town.
Between 2015 and 2020, the Grand Marché – its new name – increased its occupancy rate from 83% to 97% by hosting 170 businesses and 270 regional producers. The volume of business increased from 333 to 375 million euros between 2015 and 2020 according to Lumin, which proposed the activities: creation of a flower and gastronomy pavilion, establishment of catering laboratories and the cooking school of Thierry Marx, etc. “Covid-19 has given new impetus to the wholesale markets by accelerating the growth of short circuit sales,” says Dominique Batani, president of the MIN and director of the Rungis market.
circuit course
The MIN now wants to develop innovation by planning a business incubator in 850 square meters of office space in the renovated old clock sales building, like Rungis, which opened Rungis & Co in 2015. The incubator Rent offices at affordable rents. It has set up an incubator which hosts four young shoots for free, including Eautours, creator of vertical apartment gardens and V21 which cooks food products with hemp. The start-ups are supported by the Les Pépites association, which brings together 50 food companies.
In addition to service companies (banking, consulting, etc.), the food incubator welcomes companies that offer new products such as Cavya, a specialist in Kampot pepper in Cambodia, and Kraft & You, a manufacturer of tableware in vegetable leather (wood fibers).
Here, we met a roaster, a producer of cookies. On a whole here!
Samuel HeluaCo-founder of Cagette Market
There are e-tailers like Cagette Market, which offer 700 regional products delivered in the agglomeration. “We came to the MIN because we get our supplies from the producers’ stall and we rent a warehouse there,” says co-founder Samuel Helua. Here, we met a roaster, a producer of cookies. On a whole here! A former engineer, Babacar Wade created La Coterie française, a digital marketplace for local meats that brought together butchers and buyers.