“MICRO-SAVINGS FOR SSE”
About this good practice
A CIGALES Club is a tool that allows savers to finance the development of an alternative economy based on people. CIGALES Clubs simplify the process of financing businesses and reduce the number of intermediaries required. The citizens who join the association can understand where their money is being invested.
When people decide to invest in a CIGALES, they join or create a CIGALES Club, a community of 5 to 20 people known as "cigaliers". Each member contributes a free amount, which constitutes the initial capital of the club. The members meet regularly and make their investment decisions. The CIGALES clubs coordinate to define their investment strategy; one club can support several projects and several clubs can invest in the same project. 2 or 3 times a year, they meet project leaders at a "project fair" on various themes. These events are organised jointly with a club + a town + the Île-de-France regional association of CIGALES that plays an important coordinating role between the clubs.
Once a project is selected, the CIGALES Club acquires a stake in the structure and its members support its development in areas identified in advance (accounting, communication, etc.) for 5 years. At the end of this period, the members will be able to recover their investment and the Club will take over management. The projects supported respect the values promoted by the movement and put people and social impact at the heart of their business project
Resources needed
The annual budget of the Regional Association is €89,000. The operation of the clubs is different from the operation of the coordination costs. Clubs are funded by the savings of members, who also pay for the running costs. The Association relies on public and private support for its work.
Evidence of success
In 2022, Clubs saved €62,115 and reinvested €53,500 for a total of 22 investments in 8 new or expanding businesses.The long-term survival rate of cigalées businesses was 78% for those financed for 3 years and 65% for those financed for 5 years.
10 current Clubs are coordinated in France.
Potential for learning or transfer
Each club collects savings from its members and decides on the amount and frequency of its members' contributions at the time of its formation. The members then collectively decide which projects to invest in and how much. This varies on average between €1,000 and €15,000 and can be in the form of a contribution from the association, capital or a current account. The network of clubs is run 100% by volunteers, while the Ile de France regional association has one full-time and one part-time employee. The association's operating costs are based on public and private subsidies. No remuneration is taken from the funds allocated by the Cigaliers to project sponsors.
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