Upswitch IndexBenelux-native SME multiples with disclosed European market views

Bakery in France

Q: How do APE codes relate to NACE Rev. 2 for French SME comparables?

APE is the per-establishment code INSEE assigns based on NAF — NAF Rev. 2 shares the four-digit root with NACE Rev. 2 and adds a sub-class letter. The Upswitch Index aggregates at the EU Rev. 2 level; APE sub-classes inherit the parent band. SIRENE provides the canonical APE/NAF assignment per establishment.

Q: Are these published numbers company-specific?

No. They are published market reference points for this business type in the country markets that Upswitch has evidence for. A real valuation still needs company-specific inputs and judgment.

Q: Why do some business types show more than one metric?

Different sectors are often discussed with different market lenses. Upswitch shows the published metrics that are available for this business type.

Q: Can I use this in a client conversation?

Yes. These pages are designed as citation-friendly starting points. For a client-ready report, use the full valuation workflow on Upswitch.

Q: Is this database free to use?

Yes. The Upswitch Index publishes free SME valuation multiples (EV/EBITDA, EV/Revenue, and P/E) by business type. Benelux can be native-local where row evidence supports it; wider European market views are disclosed as beta, borrowed, aggregate, or compatibility coverage. Historical vintages and audit exports are on paid plans.

Q: How does Upswitch Index compare to Damodaran?

Damodaran publishes annual global multiples for listed companies by broad sector — a gold standard for public markets. Upswitch Index publishes granular SME/private-company benchmark ranges by business type with row-level disclosure of whether evidence is native-local, borrowed, aggregate, or beta-stage. Both are useful; they answer different questions.

Q: What is the source methodology behind these multiples?

Upswitch publishes only through row-level benchmark contracts. Evidence can include private-market observations, local filings or statistics, listed-comparable context, and macro calibration anchors, but source labels are used only when they actually contributed to the resolved benchmark. Full methodology is on the methodology page.

Market: France — This page summarizes the published SME benchmark for this business type, including its disclosed market basis, so advisors and operators can cite a clear starting point before a full company-specific valuation.

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Last published: 13 Apr 2026fresh · 58 days old≈ 6 min read

Market context

France market data

Pair the multiples below with Delphi's latest country factors: currency, risk-free rate, macro conditions, statutory tax, and country-risk premium.

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Endpoint

Model-ready data package

Pull this sector's multiples together with country market data in one response. Use JSON for agents and apps, or CSV for Excel models and deal workpapers.

/api/benchmarks/v1/context?business_type_id=bakery&locale=en&country_code=FR

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Classification

10.71

NACE Rev. 2 primary code. National statistical labels (e.g. SBI, NACE-BEL) describe how each country maps this activity.

Markets

Benelux aggregate

Published benchmark

13 Apr 2026 · reviewed 7 Jun 2026

Indicative, model-derived reference — evidence basis and confidence are disclosed per row.

Delphi-supported market note

Valuing a bakery in France: protected boulangerie status, fonds de commerce and footfall

France protects the term boulangerie: to use it, bread must be kneaded and baked on the premises, which gives a genuine artisan bakery a defensible position against terminaux de cuisson (bake-off points). Sales are usually structured as a cession de fonds de commerce, so the commercial lease (droit au bail), location footfall and equipment dominate price, often cross-checked against revenue-percentage barèmes for boulangerie-pâtisserie. The EV/EBITDA range here is a pan-European SME indicative prior, not French transaction evidence; France's contribution is how protected status, lease quality and deal structure pull a real sale within that range.

The boulangerie name is legally protected (on-site kneading and baking), supporting artisan value.
Sales are typically asset deals (cession de fonds de commerce), driven by lease and location.
Revenue-percentage barèmes give a cross-check alongside an earnings multiple.
Droit au bail and footfall on the specific street dominate small-bakery price.
High social charges make staffing the first diligence adjustment.

Evidence basis

Pan-European SME M&A priors (Brookz, Vlerick/Moore, BDO, Marktlink)
FR context: Code de la consommation (boulangerie); BOFiP barèmes fonds de commerce
Country macro: Eurostat/OECD, reviewed Apr 2026
Indicative model - not country-transaction-evidenced

Published benchmark ranges

How To Use This Benchmark

Use these ranges as a market reference, not as a substitute for a full valuation. Company quality, growth, concentration, recurring revenue, margin profile, and deal context still matter.

Pair This With The Right Valuation Method

These benchmark pages work best when they feed into a fuller valuation workflow on Upswitch. Start with the market range, then choose the method that fits the company.

EBITDA Multiple Revenue Multiple DCF

Upswitch Index vs Damodaran

Both are useful — they answer different questions. Pick the right reference for the work.

Upswitch Index

Private-market, SME, by business type

Benelux-native where the row proves local evidence
By business type, disclosed market basis, citable vintages
Free to use — no credit card

Damodaran

Listed equities, global, by sector

Public-market companies, annual global cuts
Broad sector buckets, not country-resolved
Free academic resource

Bakery in France

Market context and regulation — France

Local classification

In France, EU NACE Rev. 2 primary maps to NAF Rev. 2 (Nomenclature d'Activités Française) — the four-digit root is identical to NACE; NAF appends a final letter for sub-classification. The INSEE SIRENE register carries each company's APE code (an NAF subset) on registration.

Official data sources

INSEE SIRENE — French statutory register; free APE / SIREN / SIRET lookup
Greffe / Pappers — commercial annual-accounts retrieval
BPCE / CCI — regional SME M&A statistics and benchmarks

Market and buyer context

France's SME transfer market is regionally heterogeneous, with concentrated activity in Île-de-France (services, head-offices), Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes (industrial), Hauts-de-France (manufacturing) and Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur (tourism, services). Buyer pools combine French mid-market PE, regional trade consolidators, and steady inbound interest from Belgian, Dutch, and German strategic buyers. Pricing typically reflects a meaningful tax-and-social-charge wedge versus Anglo-Saxon comparables — buyers price the post-deal labour-cost reality, not just the headline French gross.

Valuation factors in France

Social charges (cotisations) on top of gross salaries can reach 40–45% — verify the all-in labour cost line before normalising EBITDA.
CIR (Crédit Impôt Recherche) and JEI status materially affect after-tax cash flow for tech and R&D-heavy firms.
Statutory profit-sharing (participation, intéressement) is mandatory above thresholds — already in EBITDA, but flag the tier impact post-deal.
Owner-CEO with TNS (travailleur non salarié) status pays under-market managed-comp for tax reasons; normalise carefully.

Regulation and deal structure

Share deals in SAS / SARL require notarial publication; due-diligence cycle 6–8 weeks.
DPI (droit de préemption interne / urbain) can apply on real-estate inside operating entities — split the property line.
Loi Hamon employee-information obligation (in firms < 250 employees on share sale) adds 2-month notification delay — plan timeline.
Pacte Dutreil reduces succession-tax exposure for family transfers — relevant for owner-children deals, not for arm's-length sales.

Manufacturing and industrial production

How bakery actually gets valued

The multiples above are a market anchor — not the valuation. What drives the outcome are sector-typical normalisations, value drivers and risk compressors.

Normalisation checklist

What reported EBITDA almost always distorts in this sector.

Reconcile reported COGS to standard-cost variance accounts — abnormal scrap or rework is often booked there and silently inflates margin.
Reset depreciation to a maintenance-capex baseline; under-investment shows up as artificially high EBITDA.
Treat tooling investments paid by customers as deferred revenue, not equipment uplift.
Strip foreign-exchange gains/losses from operating EBITDA — they belong below the line.
Adjust inventory at the latest sustainable cost (FIFO/LIFO mismatch is a classic SME mis-statement).
Verify warranty and rework reserves are at industry-typical percentage of revenue.

Value drivers

What typically lifts the multiple in this sector.

Long-term framework agreements with OEMs or Tier-1 customers.
Proprietary tooling, certifications (IATF 16949, AS9100, ISO 13485) and audited quality history.
Backlog visibility ≥ 6 months and a documented capex pipeline that is funded.
Stable gross-margin trajectory through a full economic cycle.

Value killers

What compresses the multiple or kills the deal.

Single-OEM or single-platform dependency that cannot be re-contracted.
Aging machine park with deferred maintenance and no transition plan.
Energy-cost exposure not passed through in pricing.
Loss of a key technical lead without a documented succession bench.

Anonymised worked example

Illustrative — not a recommendation. Real valuations run through the Upswitch engine.

A precision-machining shop reports €6.4M revenue and €820k EBITDA. Normalisation reveals €110k of customer-funded tooling booked as revenue, €60k of FX gains in EBITDA, and a maintenance-capex shortfall of €90k versus reported depreciation. Adjusted EBITDA is €560k. A sector EV/EBITDA range of 5.0×–6.5× (mid-market industrial) gives €2.8M–€3.6M, with multiple compression at the lower bound reflecting customer concentration above 35% with two OEMs.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do APE codes relate to NACE Rev. 2 for French SME comparables?

APE is the per-establishment code INSEE assigns based on NAF — NAF Rev. 2 shares the four-digit root with NACE Rev. 2 and adds a sub-class letter. The Upswitch Index aggregates at the EU Rev. 2 level; APE sub-classes inherit the parent band. SIRENE provides the canonical APE/NAF assignment per establishment.

Are these published numbers company-specific?

No. They are published market reference points for this business type in the country markets that Upswitch has evidence for. A real valuation still needs company-specific inputs and judgment.

Why do some business types show more than one metric?

Different sectors are often discussed with different market lenses. Upswitch shows the published metrics that are available for this business type.

Can I use this in a client conversation?

Yes. These pages are designed as citation-friendly starting points. For a client-ready report, use the full valuation workflow on Upswitch.

Is this database free to use?

Yes. The Upswitch Index publishes free SME valuation multiples (EV/EBITDA, EV/Revenue, and P/E) by business type. Benelux can be native-local where row evidence supports it; wider European market views are disclosed as beta, borrowed, aggregate, or compatibility coverage. Historical vintages and audit exports are on paid plans.

How does Upswitch Index compare to Damodaran?

Damodaran publishes annual global multiples for listed companies by broad sector — a gold standard for public markets. Upswitch Index publishes granular SME/private-company benchmark ranges by business type with row-level disclosure of whether evidence is native-local, borrowed, aggregate, or beta-stage. Both are useful; they answer different questions.

What is the source methodology behind these multiples?

Upswitch publishes only through row-level benchmark contracts. Evidence can include private-market observations, local filings or statistics, listed-comparable context, and macro calibration anchors, but source labels are used only when they actually contributed to the resolved benchmark. Full methodology is on the methodology page.

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Deeper reading

How valuation, normalisation and succession actually work

Three long-form articles on the infrastructure layer beneath European SME succession — selected for this sector.

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