“It’s a real blow”, reacted the former National Institute of Crafts (INMA) upon learning that it would no longer manage the “Entreprise du Patrimoine Vivant” (ÉPI) label. The organization, which recently renamed itself Institut pour les Savoir-Faire Français (ISFF), has been in charge since 2019. Management of the label has now been ensured since April 22 by the Société Générale de Surveillance (SGS), based in Geneva and specialized in inspection and certification services.
In January 2024, the General Directorate of Enterprises (DGE) launched a new public contract for the management of the label, which SGS won in March. A difficult decision to accept for the ISFF, which did not hide its frustration in the newsletter it sent to all of its members on April 19. “I would like, in complete transparency, to share our astonishment with you” declares its president Luc Lesénécal, “The Institute has worked tirelessly (…) to allow the Label to regain its letters of nobility and to relaunch applications”.
The label, then managed by the Institut Supérieur des Métiers, was entrusted to the former INMA by the DGE in 2019. The Institute was responsible for piloting the labeling system and the promotion of the label, in particular taking care of the examination of application files from companies whose final selection then falls to the regional prefects. “Over the 4 years of management, more than 1,300 application files have been received and processed and 700 exceptional companies have obtained the label, bringing the number of EPV-certified companies to 1,035 to date” recalls Luc Lesénécal, describing this assessment as “more than positive”.
According to its president, the loss of the label management market puts the Institute, already weakened by cuts in state subsidies, in difficulty. The management of the ISFF announced that it was forced to part with part of its team (currently made up of thirty employees) to “to be able to ensure the survival of the Institute”. The ISFF ensures “fight to stay standing” and despite everything, continue its advisory and awareness-raising missions, with a view to continuing to “defend, promote and promote French companies with exceptional know-how”.
Created in 2005, the “Entreprise du Patrimoine Vivant” label is awarded under the authority of the Ministry of the Economy and Finance to French companies which stand out for their artisanal and industrial know-how judged to be of excellence. This label, awarded for a period of five years, allows the companies concerned to benefit from an increase in the Art Trade Tax Credit (CIMA).