At Vélogik, our commitment to sustainable mobility goes hand in hand with a strong social approach. Certified B Corp, our company places inclusion at the heart of its actions. Thanks in particular to its partnership with Ares, Vélogik is now recognized as a key partner for those involved in professional integration.
The Ares Group, a key player in social integration
The Ares Group is a major player in the field ofsocial integration through economic activity (IAE) in the Paris region. It is fully committed to the social and professional reintegration of people living on the margins of society. Every year, more than 4,000 beneficiaries benefit from its support, spread across various establishments and programs in three regions: Île-de-France, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes and Nouvelle-Aquitaine.
Ares operates in five key sectors: logistics, digital, circular economy, construction and public works, and green spaces. Thanks to this diversity, it offers concrete solutions tailored to the specific needs of companies and local authorities alike.
Furthermore, the activities developed by Ares are fully in line with a circular economy and sustainable development approach. These include circular logistics, with waste sorting, IT reinitialization of leased products, first-level bicycle repair and refurbishment of logistics containers.
A variety of schemes for customized integration
Ares deploys several types of structures to support the reintegration process. These include Entreprises d’Insertion (EI), Ateliers Chantier d’Insertion (ACI), Entreprises Adaptées Tremplin (EAT) and Joint-Ventures Sociales (JVS ) in partnership with companies. In this way, each beneficiary can access a career path tailored to his or her situation and skills.
Thanks to this collaborative and inclusive approach, the Ares Group actively contributes to social cohesion and the building of sustainable career paths.
More details: Ares Group professions.
In line with this integration approach, Ares has developed a partnership with Vélogik, resulting in the creation of a cycle maintenance and repair workshop.
An integration company at Vélogik
Since June 2023, this workshop has been operating at our Paris Technicentre in Ivry-sur-Seine.
In concrete terms, this space enables people who are far from employment to train in bicycle maintenance in a real-life work situation. With this initiative, Vélogik is once again asserting its ambition to combine environmental and social impact, to make cycling a real lever for integration.
Supervised by an Ares team leader, this workshop brings together six learners, who benefit from specific performance monitoring. The program alternates between theory and hands-on experience, working alongside Vélogik’s technical teams.
A springboard to employment
The results of this partnership are tangible: in 2024, more than twenty people were coached and trained in cycle mechanics, six of whom were hired and joined our teams. This support has enabled them to acquire technical skills and find lasting employment in a booming sector.
A lasting commitment to inclusion
Our partnership with Arès is in line with our commitment to the circular economy and social responsibility, combining technical expertise with a commitment to social integration.
Interview with Cyril Roussel, cycle operations manager Technicentre Vélogik d’Ivry-sur-Seine
His career path, marked by a strong social commitment, led him to supervise a team of technicians-mechanics on integration schemes at the Ivry Technicentre as Operations Manager for Arès. He joined the ranks of Vélogik at the end of 2024, as production manager for Smovengo and site manager. In this interview, he shares with us his experience, his vision of integration through work and the culture of support that is Vélogik’s strength.
Can you explain the system set up with Ares?
Cyril Roussel: We began work on this project in December 2022, and the activity started in March 2023. The Ares group is an association with some twenty entities, mainly integration companies and integration sites. Their mission is to offer accessible jobs to people who are far from employment. These may be young people without qualifications, senior citizens undergoing retraining, or people from immigrant backgrounds.
The scheme enables employees to earn a minimum wage while learning a trade. They also benefit from support to remove obstacles to employment (housing, language, health). Approximately 67% of projects end with a positive outcome, either in training leading to a qualification, or in employment.
What are the advantages of this collaboration for Ares and Vélogik?
Cyril Roussel: For Ares, this means we can offer a stable, supportive environment in which to work. The experience acquired at Vélogik can be put to good use, whether to become a bike mechanic or in other sectors. Working at Vélogik offers a structuring framework with a salary, fixed working hours and a rewarding professional environment.
For Vélogik, it’s a step in line with our DNA as a company committed to social integration. This partnership also gives us a motivated and well-supervised team. Our relationship with Ares is based on trust, and the team is now running very smoothly.
I would add to the advantages of working with ARES in partnership that we can recruit directly from them from among the mechanics at the end of their career. They are already trained and familiar with the company, which facilitates their integration and optimizes their skills development within our teams. This represents a valuable opportunity to strengthen our workforce with qualified professionals who are immediately operational.
How does day-to-day collaboration work?
Cyril Roussel: I don’t work directly with Ares employees. Damien, the Ares team leader, supervises the mechanics on integration schemes like any other internal team leader. We have a weekly production meeting where we discuss results, expectations and problems encountered.
The relationship with Ares is that of a service provider, which implies specific ways of working together. However, the working spirit is very positive, with a strong human dynamic and a good team atmosphere.
Vélogik, a B Corp-certified company, is thus actively committed to professional integration by working with partners such as Ares Services, a Groupe Ares groupeares.fr integration company founded in 1994. The aim of this partnership is to promote environmentally-friendly, inclusive and local bicycle mobility, while offering opportunities to people who are far from employment.
A shared commitment to sustainable, inclusive mobility
Ultimately, the partnership between Vélogik and Ares perfectly illustrates a shared commitment to sustainable, inclusive mobility. By combining technical expertise with a social mission, these two committed players are actively participating in the development of environmentally-friendly mobility solutions, while promoting the professional integration of people in difficulty.
In this way, Vélogik and Ares demonstrate that economic performance and social responsibility are not incompatible, but can indeed go hand in hand, in the service of a fairer, more caring and sustainable society.
