Container premises expert Maison Eco3 opens its capital

Even though the tour of the property is quickly done, Christian Meli is proud to show off the interior of a 28m² studio converted into a shipping container. His company, Maison Eco3, is selling it for €34,900 excluding tax, primarily for emergency housing. But that's not all. The twelve-employee company he founded in Brignoles in 2017, originally to build villas, has now secured a diversified client portfolio, to the point that this year it is opening up 20% of its capital—until now entirely owned by the manager—to meet growth. Turnover has thus increased from €1.8 million in 2022 to €4.6 million last year, driven by 95% of professionals, particularly private beach concessionaires. "We took off in 2021 in this segment, notably thanks to Kazaar in Fréjus, which called on us to rebuild its premises in two months following a fire!" recalls the entrepreneur.

From individuals to professionals

Maison Eco3 had almost disappeared in its early days, then only on the private market. "It was after seeing a report on a woman who was selling self-build houses from wooden bricks that I had the idea of ​​industrializing the construction process, using end-of-life containers. By 2017, we had sold around ten villas in Draguignan, Cagnes, Plan-de-Cuques… But we hadn't taken into account the time it took to obtain permits, loans, etc.," says the business owner. And then, I had a work accident, which left me in a wheelchair for six months but allowed me to benefit from an insurance premium, I also activated the PGE during the pandemic," Enough to launch myself on the professional market with a production unit in Brignoles, first in Nicopolis, then in the Consacs area. "Here, we have 1,600m², with an overhead crane, which allows us to receive containers, cut them up, fit them out, and transform them into offices, housing, or commercial premises," summarizes the entrepreneur, who would nevertheless like to move from tenant to owner. Hence the opening up of the capital. This follows the creation of a holding company last year to oversee Maison Eco3, but also the Var Box subsidiary for the rental of converted containers, as well as the franchise branch developed in Rhône-Alpes, where Christian Meli is from. And more recently, Ecoloc Plus, dedicated to the rental of utility vehicles and construction equipment. The self-taught entrepreneur – a mechanic by trade, he first worked as a plasterer in traditional construction – has also created an association, Toit pour Moi, to which the company donates part of the profits, with the idea of ​​offering emergency housing. "I too, at the beginning, sometimes slept in my car," he confides. The offices of Maison Eco3, 400m² of converted containers clad in wood panels, also house the design office, responsible for adapting a construction project to the constraints of using containers, and an incubator for construction companies which also benefit the association.