Are you looking for the best location in Europe to set up a R&D center, a shared services center, or an innovative business? Have you thought of the key factors that will make you successful? Talents, innovation, infrastructure, dense ecosystems in the areas of IT, cleantech, health & life sciences as well as tourism and services, a strategic location, premium offices at affordable prices, the best research tax credit in Europe and an uncomparable lifestyle: the Cote d'Azur has it all! Discover what's on offer in Nice, Sophia Antipolis, Cannes and Grasse on the French Riviera, and get ready for your next move.

1. THE CÔTE D’AZUR,
THE PLACE FOR COMPANIES
THAT WANT IT ALL.

2. DON’T YOUWANT IT ALL
FOR YOUR BUSINESS?

3. THE CÔTE D’AZUR
HAS IT ALL.

4. WANT TO EXPAND/DEVELOP
YOUR BUSINESS IN A
DEDICATED HIGH-TECH HUB?

5. FOUR TECH HUBS
IN ONE PLACE
HEALTHCLEANTECH
SMART CITY
SERVICES
TOURISM
MICEAEROSPACE
CREATIVE
INDUSTRIES
AROMA
COSMETICS
ICT
BIOTECH

6. SOPHIA ANTIPOLIS
EUROPE'S LEADING SCIENCE
AND TECHNOLOGY PARK
MOSTLY FOR R&D OR HIGH VALUE-ADDED ACTIVITIES.
900 NEW JOBS/YEAR HAVE BEEN
CREATED FOR THE PAST 40 YEARS,
EMPLOYING 34,400 PERSONS FROM 63 NATIONALITIES,
4500 RESEARCHERS, 5500 STUDENTS.
HOSTING NOW 1350 COMPANIES
INCLUDING 170 FOREIGN-OWNED COMPANIES
NURTURING A POWERFUL ECOSYSTEM

7. • 4TH SMARTEST CITY IN THE WORLD (JUNIPER RESEARCH 2015),
• 5TH EUROPEAN CITY FOR THE QUALITY OF ITS INFRASTRUCTURES (FT/FDI INTELLIGENCE 2014/15),
• 2ND FRENCH TOURIST DESTINATION,
• 2ND INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT IN FRANCE,
• HOME OF A DYNAMIC HEALTH CLUSTER.
NICE CÔTE D’AZUR & THE ÉCO-VALLÉE
NICE HAS CREATED THE ECO-VALLÉE AND PARTNERED WITH MAJOR
INDUSTRIAL LEADERS TO BECOME A PIONEER IN THE SMART CITY,
ENHANCING ITS ATTRACTIVENESS IN THE AREAS OF CLEANTECH &
SMART CITY, SERVICES & TOURISM, INNOVATIVE USAGES, HEALTH.

8. NEED
A TALENT SOURCE
CLOSE BY?

9. PROVENCE CÔTE D’AZUR:
THE 3rd LARGEST POOL OF
EXECUTIVES IN FRANCE 26% OF THE
POPULATION IN CÔTE
D’AZUR ARE HIGHER
EDUCATION GRADUATES
(INSEE 2009)
WITH 71,400€/YEAR/JOB, IT IS THE 3RD LEADING
FRENCH REGION IN TERMS OF PRODUCTIVITY
(INSEE 2012)
FRANCE IS RANKED THIRD IN EUROPE AND SIXTH IN THE WORLD
FOR HOURLY LABOR PRODUCTIVITY, AHEAD OF GERMANY (7TH)
AND THE UK (13TH) (THE CONFERENCE BOARD, 2014) .
AVERAGE COSTS PER EMPLOYEE (WAGES, SALARIES AND
STATUTORY COSTS) ARE LOWER IN FRANCE THAN IN JAPAN,
THE UNITED STATES AND GERMANY (AFII 2015).

10. AND LET’S BE HONEST,
LIVING AND WORKING IN THE SOUTH
OF FRANCE MEANS YOUR HIGHLY
QUALIFIED EMPLOYEES STAY PUT.
72% FRENCH
EXECUTIVES
CONSIDER IT THE MOST
ATTRACTIVE REGION!
(ARII/PACA MODE D’EMPLOI 2015).

11. THERE’S NO SHORTAGE
OF QUALIFIED PEOPLE
40.OOO ACTIVE STUDENTS

12. SOPHIATECH GATHERS 2500 STUDENTS &
800 RESEARCHERS FROM TOP ICT INSTITUTES
(INRIA, CNRS, EURECOM, POLYTECH NICE-SOPHIA)
SKEMA & EDHEC FIGURE REGULARLY IN THE
TOP 10 FINANCIAL COURSES IN THE WORLD (FINANCIAL TIMES)
THE UNIVERSITY OF NICE SOPHIA ANTIPOLIS RANKS
-IN FRANCE #1 FOR LIFE SCIENCES AND #2 IN MEDICINE
-IN THEWORLD #34 IN MEDICINE AND #38 FOR LIFE SCIENCES (LEIDEN)
-IN TOP 150 WORLDWIDE IN MATHEMATICS (SHANGHAI)

13. YOU WANT AN
INTERNATIONALLY-RECOGNISED
RESEARCH HUB ?

14. IT COUNTS OVER 17,000 RESEARCHERS IN PUBLIC
RESEARCH INCL. 5,000 IN SOLE CÔTE D’AZUR.
(ARII/PACA MODE D’EMPLOI 2015)
PROVENCE CÔTE D’AZUR REGION
DEVOTES 2.8 BN € INVESTMENTS
TO R&D (ARII PACA MODE D’EMPLOI 2015)
IT COUNTS 51 RESEARCH
LABORATORIES & 21 JOINT
RESEARCH UNITS.
FIVE ICT AND LIFE SCIENCES LABORATORIES HAVE BEEN
ACCREDITED AS LABORATORIES OF EXCELLENCE (LABEX)
BY THE FUTURE INVESTMENTS PROGRAMME, WHICH HAS
AWARDED THEM 46 MILLION EUROS IN PUBLIC FUNDING.
THE UNIVERSITY OF NICE
CÔTE D’AZUR IS THE 1ST
RESEARCH HUB AFTER PARIS
FOR THE NUMBER OF
SCIENCE ACADEMY AWARDS
IN 2013 AND 2014.
HARVARD AWARD, JACK KILBY AWARD, JAFFÉ AWARD, AMERICAN ROCK MECHANICS
RESEARCH AWARD, CNRS MEDALS, GALIEN AWARD ARE AMONG THE INTERNATIONAL
RECOGNITIONS GIVEN TO AZUREAN SCIENTISTS IN 2012-2014.
FRANCE RANKS 2ND IN EUROPE, 6TH IN
THE WORLD FOR INTERNATIONAL PATENTS
(WIPO 2013). PROVENCE CÔTE D’AZUR RANKS 3RD IN FRANCE.
FRANCE DEVOTES 2.24% OF GDP TO R&D
WELL ABOVE THE UK (1.77%) AND EU (1.93%) (OECD 2011).

15. WANT TO BE
SURROUNDED
BY THE BEST
NETWORK?

16. 9 HI-TECH CLUSTERS:
2 STANDARD BODIES:

17. FIELDS OF
EXCELLENCE
IT
HEALTH &
LIFE SCIENCES AEROSPACE
CLEANTECH
FLAVOURS,
FRAGRANCES & COSMETICS
TOURISM SERVICES

18. CUTTING-EDGE IT EXPERTISE
IT
INRIA

19. FRENCH TECH CÔTE D’AZUR:
# 945 START-UPS CREATED IN THE PAST 3 YEARS
# OVER 220 M€ SEED & VENTURE CAPITAL IN 100+ OPERATIONS SINCE 2010
# 20 INTERNATIONAL AWARDS IN THE PAST 5 YEARS
A UNIQUE BLEND OF WORLDWIDE LEADERS ALONG A RICH TECHNICAL
ECOSYSTEM IN EUROPE’S LEADING SCIENCE PARK: SOPHIA ANTIPOLIS
CAD MICROELECTRONICS 5G NFC LTE
HIGH SPEED NETWORKS TELECOM WIRELESS SECURITY
IDENTITY IOT M2M 3D IMAGE PROCESSING STREAMING
VR BIG DATA EMBEDDED SOFTWARE FINANCIAL SOFTWARE
WEB 2.0 E-LEARNING EMBEDDED ELECTRONICS E-HEALTH
E-ENVIRONMENT SMART CITY
M-TOURISM SMART GRIDS AERONAUTICS

20. AT EUROPEAN CROSSROADS
OF AEROSPACE & ICT
AEROSPACE
THALES ALENIA SPACE

21. ONE LEADER, MANY SPECIALISTS: THALES ALENIA SPACE
IN CANNES A WORLD LEADER IN TELECOMMUNICATIONS, OBSERVATION, NAVIGATION, SECURITY
AND DEFENSE WITH OVER 2000 EMPLOYEES & OVER M€ 40 INVESTMENT SINCE 2010.
MANY SPECIALISTS: OROLIA, NEXESS, ASTRIUM, RAKON, ETC.
A SUPPORTIVE ECOSYSTEM
WITH GALILEO MASTERS, 8 CLUSTERS
INCLUDING SCS & PEGASE, THE NEW ESA BIC
INCUBATOR, GEOAZUR, INRIA, ETSI…
AN EXCEPTIONAL REGIONAL HUB:
AERONAUTICS & SPACE ARE THE FIRST INDUSTRY
IN PROVENCE/CÔTE D’AZUR WORTH 5.5BN€,
8 WORLD-CLASS COMPANIES, 200 SPECIALISTS
85,0000 JOBS (40,000 CIVILIAN AND 45,000 MILITARY & RELATED),
1,700 RESEARCHERS AND 30% OF REGIONAL R&D.

22. ECOTECH
THE PLACE TO BE
FOR SMART CITY PIONEERS

23. NICE CÔTE D’AZUR IS NOW THE
4TH LEADING SMART CITY* IN THE WORLD.
A LARGE-SCALE URBAN
OPERATION THROUGHOUT
THE ECO-VALLÉE,
FOCUSING ON CLEAN TECHNOLOGY
& SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
CLEAN EXPERIMENTS CARRIED
OUT BY INDUSTRIAL LEADERS
SUCH AS CISCO, IBM, ERDF, ORANGE, Bosch,
SCHNEIDER ELECTRIC, VEOLIA…
THE LIST IS LONG.
OVER 550 COMPANIES
& KEY STAKEHOLDERS
THE LIST IS LONG IN THE FIELDS OF SMART
GRIDS & THE SMART CITY, RENEWABLE
ENERGY & RISK MANAGEMENT
* (JUNIPER RESEARCH 2015)

24. HEALTH & LIFE SCIENCES
EXCELLENCE

25. A STRONG REGIONAL LIFE SCIENCE COMMUNITY:
THERAPEUTICS TARGETING :
OPHTALMOLOGY, DERMATOLOGY,
ONCOLOGY, CNS, ALZHEIMER,
METABOLISM & NUTRITION,
MEDICAL DEVICES:
IMAGING, IMPLANTS, DIAGNOSTIC
E-HEALTH,
WEARABLES
3 MAIN AREAS OF EXPERTISE:
SUCCESSFUL LEADERS, STARTUPS & SPIN OFFS
2ND FRENCH RESEARCH AREA IN LIFE SCIENCES: 6,000 ACADEMIC RESEARCHERS, 400 LIFE SCIENCE COMPANIES
2ND FRENCH REGION FOR CLINICAL TRIALS & MOST DENSE MEDICAL NETWORK IN FRANCE
A DYNAMIC LOCAL ECOSYSTEM WITH EUROBIOMED, CNR SANTÉ, CIU SANTÉ, PAILLON 2020, SATT SE…

26. INNOVATING SINCE THE 16TH CENTURY
AROMA, FRAGRANCES & COSMETICS

27. THE WORLD CAPITAL OF AROMA,
INTO FRAGRANCES & COSMETICS
GRASSE HIGH-TECH PERFUMERY HUB ACHIEVES 70% EXPORTS
A DEDICATED ECOSYSTEM & A WEALTH
OF COMPANIES THROUGH THE VALUE CHAIN
TARGETING 4 MARKETS: ALCOHOLIC
PERFUMERY, COSMETICS, DETERGENTS &
AGRI-FOOD PRODUCTS.
55% OF FRENCH AROMATIC
PRODUCTION & 8% OF WORLDWIDE
TURNOVER GENERATED IN GRASSE.

28. TOURISM & SERVICES
A PARADISE

29. OFFERING EXCELLENT CONNECTIVITY AT THE HEART OF EMEA, QUALIFIED & MULTILINGUAL
HR, A STRONG IT ECOSYSTEM, AND OPTIMAL CORPORATE OFFICE LOCATIONS MEAN MANY
INTERNATIONAL LEADERS HAVE ESTABLISHED THEIR R&D, TRAINING CENTERS, AND SUPPORT
FOR CALL CENTERS HERE.
THE SAME ATTRACTIVITY APPLIES FOR SHARED SERVICES IN OTHER SECTORS
ONE OF THE WORLD’S TOP 3
YACHTING NAVIGATIONAL
AND CRUISING ZONES.
ONE OF THE WORLD’S
TOP 10 DESTINATIONS.
WITH 11 MILLION TOURISTS
AND 2 MILLION BUSINESS VISITORS,
THE CÔTE D’AZUR IS THE SECOND BIGGEST
FRENCH DESTINATION FOR INTERNATIONAL &
BUSINESS TOURISM, AFTER PARIS,
OF COURSE.

30. WHY NOT
EXPAND YOUR BUSINESS
IN AN INTERNATIONAL
DECISION-MAKING
ENVIRONMENT?

31. MAJOR PLAYERS ARE
ALREADY THERE
SOME OTHERS ARE
MAKING THE MOVE…
ACCENTURE, AIR FRANCE, AMADEUS, AMERICAN EXPRESS, BOSCH, CADENCE, CISCO, DASSAULT SYSTEMES,
ETSI, FORTINET, HITACHI, HONEYWELL, HP, HUAWEI, IBM, INTEL, LAGARDÈRE ACTIVE, MAGNETTI
MARELLI, ORACLE, ORANGE, SCHNEIDER ELECTRIC, SYMANTEC, TOYOTA, THALES ALENIA SPACE,W3C…

32. YEAR OF CORPORATE LOCATION FOR OPERATING ESTABLISHMENTS,
IN NUMBER OF ESTABLISHMENTS
SOURCE: SIRIUS (NICE CÔTE D’AZUR CCI), 2013.
OVER 120 FOREIGN COMPANIES SET UP IN CÔTE
D’AZUR EVERY YEAR FOR THE PAST 5 YEARS.
THEY CONCENTRATE IN:
ICT, TOURISM, SERVICES,
HEALTH & LIFE SCIENCES,
R&D & SHARED SERVICE
CENTERS.
AND MOSTLY COME FROM THE
USA, EUROPE & THE BRICS.

33. LISTEN TO WHAT SOME OF THEM HAVE TO SAY:

38. THE COTE D’AZUR HOSTS 400 INTERNATIONAL & NATIONAL
B2B EVENTS.THAT MEANS 500,000 CONFERENCE GUESTS
AND 2 MILLION BUSINESS VISITORS AYEAR.
IN ADDITION,
NUMEROUS PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS & STAKEHOLDERS
HOST 40+WORKSHOP SERIES,CONFERENCES & NETWORK-
BUILDING BUSINESS GATHERINGS YEAR ROUND.

39. MAJOR LOCAL EVENTS
ATTRACT THE BIGGEST
INTERNATIONAL DECISION-MAKERS
ALL ALONG THE YEAR.

40. YOU WANT
THE ENTIRE WORLD
JUST 30 MINUTES
AWAY YOUR OFFICE?

41. THE NICE CÔTE D’AZUR AIRPORT
IS FRANCE’S 2ND LARGEST HUB,
SERVING 30 COUNTRIES.

42. NORTH AMERICA,AFRICA,
EUROPE,MIDDLE EAST…
MORE THAN 100 DIRECT
DESTINATIONS TO 30
COUNTRIES FROM NICE.
IDEALLY LOCATED:5KM FROM THE CENTER OF NICE,
20 MINUTES AWAY FROM SOPHIA ANTIPOLIS & OTHER LARGE CITIES
MOSCOW:3H 35MN
NYC:9H 5MN
DUBAÏ:6H 15MN

43. YOU WANT
THE BEST LOCATION
FOR YOUR BUSINESS,
BUT AT A VERY
COMPETITIVE PRICE?

44. A GLOBAL PLACE,
AT VILLAGE PRICES
NICE &
SOPHIA ANTIPOLIS
PREMIUM SITES:
4 TIMES CHEAPER
THAN PARIS

45. WE HAVE OVER 1,4 MILLION
SQUARE METERS OF OFFICE SPACE,
AND MAJOR OFFICE PROPERTY PROGRAMS
LAUNCHED OVER
NICE CÔTE D’AZUR METROPOLIS
AND SOPHIA ANTIPOLIS.

46. YOU WANT
ATTRACTIVE INCENTIVE
SCHEMES?

47. WRITE OFF 30% OFYOUR R&D EXPENSES* EVERY YEAR, THANKS TO FRANCE’S RESEARCH TAX CREDIT (CIR):
* 30% UP TO 100 M€ AND 5% BEYOND, A POWERFUL LEVERAGE EFFECT TO BE COMBINED WITH OTHER PACKAGES.
ONE OF THE WORLD’S BEST PACKAGES
“THE MOST ATTRACTIVE TAX TREATMENT
OF R&D IN THE WORLD”
(OECD OUTLOOK, 2012)
“FRANCE IS THE EUROPEAN LEADER IN
CORPORATE TAXATION FOR R&D ACTIVITY,
TAKING INTO CONSIDERATION TAX BASES,
DEPRECIATION RULES, TAX EXEMPTIONS
AND CREDITS”
KPMG, CHOIX CONCURRENTIELS 2012)
“THE CIR IS THE
LEADING INNOVATION FUNDING
PACKAGE FOR EUROPEAN COMPANIES”
(8TH BAROMETER OF EUROPEAN INNOVATION,
BY ALMA CONSULTING GROUP 2012)

48. WANT YOUR COMPANY
TO FLOURISH
WITHOUT FORGETTING…

49. 300 SUNNY DAYS A YEAR
120 KM OF COASTLINE
35 PORTS
9 NATURALPARKS(MERCANTOURNATIONALPARK,ETC.)
15 SKI STATIONS
19 GOLF COURSES
125 SPORTS ACTIVITIES TO ENJOY
5200 RESTAURANTS:FROM SMALLBOUTIQUERESTAURANTS
TO LARGE3-STARFINE-DININGESTABLISHMENTS
17 CASINOS
PLENTYOF ICONICLOCATIONSNEARBY:NICE,CANNES,GRASSE,
MENTON,ANTIBES,SAINTPAULDEVENCE,CAPD’AIL,
SAINTJEANCAPFERRAT,SAINT-TROPEZ,BORDIGHERA…
PERSONAL FULFILLMENT?

50. …FAMILY WELL BEING?
…
120 KM OF COASTLINE
15 SKI STATIONS
OVER 6000 CULTURAL & SPORTING EVENTS
84 MUSEUMS
AND
21 INTERNATIONAL SCHOOLS…

51. 21 SCHOOLS OFFER BILINGUAL OR
INTERNATIONAL CURRICULAE FROM
KINDERGARTEN (FROM 30 MONTHS) TO
HIGH SCHOOL (UP TO 18),
IN UP TO 7 LANGUAGES.
THAT IS THE 2ND LARGEST
CONCENTRATION OF INTERNATIONAL
SCHOOLS IN FRANCE AFTER PARIS.
…CHILDREN’S EDUCATION?

52. THE CÔTE D’AZUR, IS BUSINESS,
SUNSHINE, BLUE SKIES, THE SEA AND
THE MOUNTAINS - ALL IN ONE PLACE!

53. YOU SAID YOU WANTED IT ALL.
CC MYOSOTISMAIL

54. YOU SAID YOU WANTED IT ALL.
VILLE DE MENTON

55. YOU SAID YOU WANTED IT ALL.
CRT RIVIERA CÔTE D'AZUR - GEORGES VERAN

56. YOU SAID YOU WANTED IT ALL.
CC FREDERIC PARIZOT

57. TEAM UP WITH US FOR A SMOOTH SET-UP:
TEAM CÔTE D’AZUR OFFERS A FULL RANGE OF FREE, PERSONALIZED & CONFIDENTIAL SERVICES
TO HELP YOU TRANSFORM THE SET-UP PROCESS INTO A TOTAL SUCCESS!
CONNECTING TO THE
ECOSYSTEM
FINDING THE BEST SITE
FOR YOUR BUSINESS
ASSISTANCE IN RECRUITING
YOUR TEAMS
ACCESSING PUBLIC
INSENTIVES
CHANNELING YOUR
COMMUNICATION

58. V
THE CÔTE D’AZUR,
THE PLACE FOR COMPANIES
THAT WANT IT ALL.

59. “THERE IS NO SHAME IN PREFERRING HAPPINESS”
ALBERT CAMUS
PERHAPS THE BEST REASON OF ALL
TO BASE YOUR BUSINESS ON THE CÔTE D’AZUR.

60. GET IN TOUCH !
INFO@TEAMCOTEDAZUR.FR
TEL : +33(0)4 92 17 51 51
investincotedazur.com
COTEDAZUR4BIZ

61. THE DEVELOPMENT AGENCY
FOR BUSINESSES
THAT WANT IT ALL!
CÔTED’AZUR,
INDER,WIKIMEDIA