Toulon: a teleworking destination

The emergence of new centres of attraction in Toulon is particularly timely in the post-crisis context. With the experience of the teleworkingMany employees have discovered that they can be just as effective without necessarily living in the Paris region. The decentralisation that could ensue would benefit many medium-sized towns. And Toulon, with its direct TGV link to the Gare de Lyon in Paris, has clearly made the case for decentralisation. a card to play. This map is all the more strategic as new infrastructures are springing up in the immediate vicinity of the TGV station.

" In France, if you want to reach critical mass and work with major accounts, you have to be in Paris a lot: I go up there every week...says Jean Larroumets, chairman and founder of Egerie. When you're in Toulon city centre, as we chose to do with Chalucet, it's much simpler. Toulon has all the facilities of a major metropolis in a town of accessible size. The journey takes four hours, or half a day, during which you can easily get on with your work and be efficient. You don't lose any time. When you go up to Paris for two or three days, it's less of a burden than living there. And when our teams from Paris come to Toulon, it's a breath of fresh air for them. "

We're staying here, our identity is in Toulon

What's more, the dependence of business leaders on a Parisian address could well become less pronounced. In any case, that's what Jean Larroumets wants, and he's determined to take on this regional identity: " Until recently, we were subject to a certain amount of pressure from investment funds, which were unwilling to support a company if it wasn't based in Paris. Before, we would have been stuck, forced to accept this logic and move. But sometimes you have to bang your fist on the table and say: "No, we're staying here, our identity is in Toulon". We're managing to recruit, including in my sector where resources are very tight: developers and cyber experts. Once you've got them here, they don't go away. As an entrepreneur, I want to succeed in the regions. I think it's important, there's a lot of energy there, and we also need to show that there can be great entrepreneurial stories elsewhere than in Paris, including in the digital sector. ".

Teleworking operation

The advantage of teleworking has not escaped the attention of departmental officials, who last May launched an "operation teleworking" embodied by the slogan: "Teleworking is the key to success". The Var, head in the office, feet on holiday" . Var Tourisme, the tourism development agency, initiated this initiative to "encourage workers to come and enjoy the Var destination to the full". In conjunction with the department's various tourist offices, Var Tourisme has listed the following on its website a dedicated page all the local players involved in teleworking, in particular to guide them towards accommodation solutions tailored to their needs, and coworking spaces. " The crisis will clearly reinvent our travel habits in the years to come. With this in mind, Var Tourisme wants to adapt now and offer a range of services tailored to the needs of workers and tourists." say those in charge of the operation.