When it started out, EPS was an incoming agency that operated mostly in the three départements of the Northern Alps but also throughout the rest of the Rhône-Alpes region. The next step taken by company founder, Jean-Philippe Delage, was to move into event organising for which he created another business called Grands Evénements .

We get involved in organising events such as seminars and conferences as well as events for organisations, product launches and company anniversaries, summarises the agency’s boss, who employs three project managers and one sales person. We’re still based in Chambéry and we work throughout the whole of France. On 2 October, for example, we organised a corporate challenge at Rueil-Malmaison for the Institut Français du Pétrole. It’s actually our key annual event, since the clients have put their trust in us for the last 12 years. For this year’s event, which included a zip wire, a mountain bike trail, archery, clay pigeon shooting and musical entertainment at the end of the day, we mobilised 17 members of staff, 14 of which came from the Savoie area and were mostly guides and instructors .

A few days beforehand, between 25 and 27 September, the agency organised the second edition of the international conference for dental implants at Chambéry’s conference centre, Le Manège, bringing together dental surgeons and prosthodontists. This conference, which was initially launched by Savoie-based dentists, takes place every two years and involves 18 months of preparation, reveals Jean-Philippe Delage. About six or seven countries were represented, with almost 500 participants. At the end of 2008 we also have two gala evenings to organise for Eurovia in Chambéry and Saint-Étienne, each event for 400 participants. And we were recently in charge of a Saur convention in Évian and the 50th anniversary of intermunicipal links for Chambéry Métropole .

In total, between them, EPS and Grands Événements work on about 70 seminars each year, mostly in the Alps, 60% of them in the winter time. They last between one and five days and involve between 20 and 300 participants, 20% of whom are foreign, mostly British and Belgians. Mountain-based events are often team building operations in resorts such as La Clusaz, Les 2 Alpes, Alpe d’Huez, Les Arcs, Valmorel and Courchevel. But there are also clients who prefer to opt for urban sites, often choosing Lyon, Annecy and Aix-les-Bains.

This year both branches have seen their business grow by 20%, with EPS making 60% of the total turnover. In 2008, we revamped our visual profile, creating new logos and a new website, explains Jean-Philippe Delage. As we also hold a travel agency licence, we can offer new international destinations like Morocco, Tunisia, Spain and Italy. We’re also working towards ISO 14001 registration and are launching two new incentive products this winter: a winter sports trial on snow but using some mystery equipment and Timber-Mania , which is a forest challenge .

EPS works on a regular basis with Domaine Saint-Jean-de-Chépy, Château des Comtes de Challes, Le Roma in Albertville, the Agora, the Manoir and the Mercure in Aix-les-Bains and charges between 100 and 250 € for a day’s incentive or team building, depending on what activities are chosen. For an all-inclusive seminar, with one night’s accommodation, meals and work sessions, the cost is about 300 € whilst four nights will set you back about 1 500 €. For an event organised by Grands événements , rates start at 15,000 € and can rise to over 100,000 €.