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BIM - Entrepreneurs & Investors
Frédéric Jousset's BIM deploys Webhelp proceeds across European growth equity, cultural venues and art media.
BIM - Entrepreneurs & Investors
BIM traces its origins to 2010, when Frédéric Jousset created the investment vehicle after more than a decade building Webhelp, the customer-service outsourcing platform he co-founded with Olivier Duha. The exit — Webhelp merged with Concentrix in a deal valuing the combined group at roughly $4.8 billion — crystallized wealth that flows directly into BIM. Unlike a conventional family office, BIM is structured as an investment company with a broad mandate; Jousset's mother, Marie-Laure Jousset, served as chief curator at the Centre Pompidou, a through-line for the firm's deep cultural-sector commitments. The investment book falls into two clusters. On the growth-equity side, BIM has backed French and European SMEs and scale-ups across enterprise services, digital platforms, and consumer brands. In real assets, the firm controls a portfolio of trophy French properties: Relais de Chambord, a luxury hotel adjacent to the Renaissance château; Hangar Y, a converted 19th-century dirigible hangar in Meudon now used for exhibitions and events; Aura Invalides, an immersive light-and-sound experience inside Les Invalides in Paris; and the Pleyel en mouvement mixed-use redevelopment in Saint-Denis. BIM also owns Beaux Arts Magazine and Le Quotidien de l'Art, two media titles covering the French and global art market. Jousset's network supplies BIM's edge in origination and governance. He is a former president of HEC Alumni, a member of Le Siècle — the elite French discussion club — and an administrator and patron of the Musée du Louvre. In 2019, he founded the Art Explora Foundation, endowed with a stated €100 million commitment, which operates the museum-catamaran ArtExplorer and the TF35 sailing team alongside ArtNova, its digital and educational arm. The foundation sits adjacent to, not inside, the investment company. BIM does not disclose aggregate AUM, and its headcount remains private. The architecture is the differentiator. BIM is not a regulated fund manager marketing to institutional allocators; it is a permanent-balance-sheet investor that redeploys monetization events — hotel revenues, exhibition receipts, media dividends, portfolio-company exits — into new equity positions and cultural acquisitions. This closed-loop structure means BIM faces no redemption risk, no fund-life constraint, and no external LP reporting obligations, giving Jousset unlimited time to compound across illiquid French culture, media, and private equity.
General information
Firm type
Generalist
Year founded
2010
AUM
Undisclosed
Location
Region
Europe
Country
France
City
Paris
Corporate office
Paris, France
Principals
Frédéric Jousset
Founder
Sector focus
Frequently asked questions
Where does BIM's capital come from?
The capital originates from Frédéric Jousset's personal wealth, created through Webhelp, the customer-experience outsourcing business he co-founded with Olivier Duha. In 2023, Webhelp merged with NASDAQ-listed Concentrix in a transaction that valued the combined group at approximately $4.8 billion. Jousset does not manage third-party money — BIM operates as a proprietary investment company. The wealth is supplemented by cash flows from BIM's operating assets, including hotels, event venues, and media properties.
Does BIM invest as an LP in external funds or only make direct investments?
BIM primarily executes direct equity investments and wholly-owned acquisitions rather than committing capital as a limited partner to blind-pool funds. This preference is consistent with the permanent-capital structure — BIM is not warehousing commitments for a fee. On the real-asset side, BIM typically owns and operates venues directly, such as Relais de Chambord and Hangar Y, rather than investing through third-party property funds.
How does the Art Explora Foundation relate to BIM?
Art Explora is a separate philanthropic foundation endowed by Frédéric Jousset, with a reported €100 million commitment. It operates the ArtExplorer museum catamaran, the TF35 sailing team, and the ArtNova digital-education initiative. It is legally distinct from BIM, though the foundation's cultural mission aligns with BIM's media and venue holdings. BIM's ownership of Beaux Arts Magazine and Le Quotidien de l'Art creates a thematic overlap, but the foundation does not invest for financial return.
What types of companies does BIM target for growth equity?
BIM focuses on European growth-stage companies, with an emphasis on France. Sectors include enterprise services — a legacy of the Webhelp experience — along with digital platforms, consumer brands, and media. The firm has not disclosed a standard cheque size, but its approach is concentrated rather than index-like. BIM's holding period is indefinite, consistent with its permanent-capital architecture.
Who makes investment decisions at BIM?
Frédéric Jousset is the founder and primary decision-maker. The firm does not publicize a formal investment committee structure. Jousset's network — HEC Alumni, Le Siècle, CroissancePlus — and his board roles at the Louvre and other cultural institutions provide deal flow and due-diligence support, but ultimate approval authority rests with the founder.
Is BIM a single-family office?
BIM functions economically as a single-family investment vehicle for Frédéric Jousset but is legally structured as an investment company, not a regulated family office. The distinction matters: BIM operates operating businesses directly — hotels, a museum experience, two art publications — rather than only holding financial assets. This blurring of investor and operator is central to its model.
Does BIM have any external investors or co-investors?
BIM has not disclosed any external limited partners. The firm deploys proprietary capital exclusively. On certain real-estate and venue projects, BIM may partner with public entities — Pleyel en mouvement in Saint-Denis, for example, involves local-government coordination — but these are operating partnerships, not pooled investment vehicles.
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