Banc d’Essai(s): a committed incubator, open to a wide range of activities and focused on contemporary issues.
The ENSA Paris-la Villette incubator offers personalized support to architecture graduates wishing to create or develop an independent business in the world of architecture. Incubatees benefit from services and tools specific to entrepreneurship provided by professional lecturers, as well as feedback from school alumni who act as mentors. The incubator aims to build a network of partners based on the social economy.
Created in 2025, Banc d’essai(s) complements existing incubators at other architecture schools.
© Atelier BEAU/VOIR
Program and organization
Banc d’essai(s) is at once a time, a space and a collective. It is made up of experienced professionals and experts in their field, as well as young incubated entrepreneurs.
There are two types of participants:
– Experts: professionals from business sectors specific to entrepreneurship, who speak in their own area of expertise (law, commerce, communications, human resources, etc.).
– Referents: ENSAPLV alumni from different backgrounds, who support business projects by sharing their experience.
Incubation takes place over nine consecutive two-day sessions from February to November at the ENSAPLV – Ardennes site.
Applications
Candidates may include:
– graduates of architecture schools, whatever their degree, age or previous status;
– who have recently set up (within the last 5 years), or are about to set up, an independent, entrepreneurial business;
– alone or in a group (with their [future] associates who may or may not be graduates of an ENSA);
– related to the architectural profession, in the broadest sense of the term: architecture, landscape, urban planning, scenography, design, AMO, etc.
Each year, a maximum of 20 companies or company projects are selected.
Calendar
A call for applications is published every year.
Applications for the Class of 2025 are now closed.
Application deadline for 2026 (February to November): October 1, 2025.
Registration fees
650 euros per learner company
Contact
INCUBATED 2025
Marwan ALGANE, Mathias LANDES and Matteo MEREA [ALMAS & CYCLIE] – Charlotte GUILLOCHON and Victor MESGUICH [Atelier Apara] – Clément BERTHOU [Atelier Clément Berthou] – Elsa DUPONT [Atelier EDA] – Florent GUIZIOU and Jeanne LE PORS [Atelier Kraken] – Lea KAUFFEISEN [Bureau KAU] – Anna-Laura BOURGUIGNON, Frédérique JONNARD and Flora MARCHAND [2 microns] – Yann NINOT [EXISTANTS] – Clémentine THÉNOT and Pierre-Julien LEE [FannyJohn Architectes] – Kassim Kún MOHAMED, Ami DIOUF et Hakim ABOUDOU [Fondasyo] – Camille KIKUDJI-ABBAS [IMARA Architecture et Patrimoine] – Pamela CUMBAL PORTILLA, Luis ALARCÓN ORTIZ et María BELÉN CUMBAL PORTILLA [Materia Cruda] – Sébastien BONNEROT [super bueno studio] – Javier AHUMADA, Philippe CEGIELNY, Arthur RENAUDINEAU et Rose SCHWAB [temps libres architecture] – Marine VAUCHEZ [Traverse Architecture] – Johanna MUSCH et Louis ROBERT [Umarell]
Contact
Access the contact directory
Private and institutional partners
With the support of the CulturePro program of the French Ministry of Culture and the ConfluencES project, winner of the ExcellencES call for projects (ANR France 2030).
