La Venelle: the temple of the re-use opens its doors in Montreuil

DATE DE PUBLICATION 23/09/2025

La Venelle: the temple of the re-use opens its doors in Montreuil

On the 3rd of September, 1,800 m² of shops opened their doors in Montreuil. This project brings together 9 associations willing to promote responsible consumption while offering people excluded from the job market an opportunity to reintegrate it. It is a fine example of cooperation around the re-use sector within the Social and Solidarity Economy, to which France Active is fully committed.

On the 3rd of September 2025, 1,800 m² dedicated to re-use opened their doors. 9 shops will offer passers-by the opportunity to consume responsibly while enabling people who are excluded from the job market to return to work. It is not just about sales, as there are also co-repair workshops offered by La Recyclerie Sportive, sewing workshops offered by La Collecterie, and a café-canteen where you can have lunch.

Come to discover the structures present at La Venelle (six of which have benefited from the advisory support and funding of France Active) at 198 Rue Robespierre in Montreuil (Seine-Saint-Denis).

Atelier R-ARE creates solid wood objects and furniture from materials recovered during the demolition of buildings. This association, legally recognized as an “atelier chantier d’insertion” , designs and manufactures unique pieces and layouts, making use of wood escaped from landfill. The other materials recovered during demolition are carefully sent to partners specialized in recycling.

Emmaüs Coup de Main promotes access to sustainable employment by offering employees personalised social support and a suitable professional environment within its reintegration path. Teams of employees in the reintegration process, supervised by permanent staff, manage daily the 7 “ressourceries” and 3 logistics centres located in eastern Paris. At the same time, the association is developing a specific programme, designed to support families facing precarious situations, aiming to foster reintegration through housing.

Emmaüs Défi is an atelier chantier d’insertion whose mission is to support people in extremely precarious situations to find a job, housing and access to healthcare, so that they can find their place in society. In its shop, this organisation proposes second-hand clothing and accessories.

Envie sells reconditioned household appliances at reduced prices, takes back old appliances and runs introductory workshops on repairing and on best practices to use and maintain the devices. The equipment is collected and repaired locally in the Île-de-France region, thus promoting short supply chains. The goal is to sell 2,500 appliances per year, which would avoid 125 tonnes of waste.

La Collecterie is a Montreuil-based ressourcerie created in 2012 that collects, sorts, repairs and transforms items that would be thrown otherwise to give them a second life. These objects are reintroduced into the cycle of solidarity-based and ethical consumption, while providing people in professional reintegration programmes a chance to work.

A look back at our reportage at La Collecterie:

La Ressourcerie Du Spectacle was created in 2014 by entertainment professionals. The project comes out from a clear finding: in the entertainment industry, the equipment is frequently replaced and rarely re-used while others struggle to have access to it. In La Venelle, it offers audio-visual materials, sound, lighting, stage equipment and scenographic elements waiting for a new lease of life, as well as a self-repair area equipped with a toolbox.

La Recyclerie Sportive is the first organisation dedicated to restoring and reselling sport equipment and materials. It collects items from individuals and professionals that are resold after repairing or transforming them.

Neptune is an actor of the solidarity-based re-use sector located in Montreuil since 1994, working on the professional reintegration of more than 90 employees within its local ressourceries. The association collects, recycles and sells a wide variety of second-hand items, while also running workshops to raise awareness on more responsible consumption. True to its social commitment, Neptune will be opening a solidarity thrift shop at La Venelle.

Le REFER, the Île-de-France region’s Re-use Network, brings together social re-use organisations, including ressourceries, recycled goods shops and specialized workshops. Based on a mutualist approach, it supports the growth of initiatives focused on mutual aid, sharing and cooperation to respond to contemporary social and environmental challenges. Advocating for a non-profit and non-competitive vision of re-use, the network now brings together nearly 70 member organisations committed to waste reduction and local solidarity.

You can also enjoy a delicious lunch at Parelle, the cafeteria run by La Collecterie.

France Active supports the circular economy and the post-first-life sector

France Active’s objective is to structure solidarity-based sectors, from collection and sorting to re-use, in order to increase the volumes of materials and objects processed. This approach also aims to preserve the value created for the benefit of local areas by supporting the local economy and the development of local employment.
To achieve this, France Active supports industrial business models that do not create waste, activities that promote repair and re-use, and solutions for waste recycling.
France Active invests to support the growth of organisations in this sector by financing the development of their volumes, their cooperation and their integration into the value chain. At the same time, it facilitates their access to the market and to a wider customer base, thereby contributing to a more inclusive, local and sustainable economy.