Chartres and Cosmetic Valley

Jean-Luc Ansel, a forestry officer who is now an entrepreneur, has been involved in local development for nearly fifteen years as the director of CODEL (Comité de développement économique d'Eure et-Loir). He encouraged the development of Cosmetic Valley, (a registered trademark), near Chartres. This provides seven thousand jobs, salons and business conventions, and an association of employers. It still attracts new companies adding to some of the prestigious groups which are already present such as Guerlain and Paco Rabanne, with a rich network of SMEs specialising in services and sub-contracting. CODEL expanded its activities into new areas, such as the forestry sector near Nogent-le-Rotrou with the Perchebois brand-name, in order to promote hand-crafted furniture from the Perche region. What attracts these companies to Chartres ? How does one become a local developer?