The TR Racing team, itself supported by the cybersecurity company Advens, is fielding two boats whose objectives go beyond simple sporting performance.
A racing team fielding two boats of the same name at the start of the Vendée Globe is simply exceptional. This is all the more so since this team, TR Racing, races without an apparent sponsor. Or more precisely, only one word appears on the sails: “Vulnerable”, written in English so that the meaning is as explicit as possible. This project is deployed thanks to a company, Advens, a recognized specialist in cybersecurity, serving large groups and mid-sized companies. A French company founded in 2000 by Alexandre Fayeulle, which today achieves 70 million turnover and employs 500 people in Europe.
Vulnerable: the word was not chosen by chance. In the case of the Vendée Globe, it is about exploiting this formidable lever that is ocean racing to highlight a real social issue. “For a long time, in the development of Advens, a philosophy has prevailedcomments Alexandre Fayeulle. It provides that 50% of economic and financial performance can be reinvested in the service of a societal approach, useful to the planet and to people. »
Accept your limits
Why precisely the vulnerability? Because it fits well into the aforementioned groove. Alexandre Fayeulle regrets that the search for results at all costs guides the majority of companies. He explains how we should especially not dismiss people who have apparent flaws, because they too have abilities to exploit. And at the same time, he insists on the need to recognize and accept our limits and those of the planet. In short, Vulnerable is here to appeal to as many people as possible. However, when we know that 350,000 people will be present to witness the start of the Vendée Globe or that the media will follow the competition closely for three months, we measure the potential to transmit the message(s).
Alexandre Fayeulle did not get involved in boating at a young age – he is the son of farmers, originally from Pas-de-Calais – but he took the time to learn. It all started in 2016 when he met skipper Thomas Ruyant. At that time, alongside 180 patron investors, he contributed to the adventure of the boat Le souffle du Nord, which participated in the Vendée with sails bearing the image of the Imagine Project. “We quickly realize the extent to which sailing is a most human sporting discipline, in the sense that the risks of shipwreck, bad weather and collision make us acutely aware of our fragility. »
Holding personnel
The complicity with Thomas Ruyant has begun, it will be consolidated: for the Vendée Globe 2020, Advens, plus the personal holding of its founder, are specially financing the construction of a boat for the sailor also born in Hauts-de-France . This time, the sails are called LinkedOut – supported by the Entourage association -, the professional network for those who, precisely, do not have a professional network. Simple philanthropic initiative? Far from it. Since the start of this partnership, some 500 people have been supported to effectively help them find work. In the meantime, Thomas Ruyant not only finished sixth in this Vendée Globe, he also won the Transat Jacques Vabre in 2021 and the Route du Rhum in 2022 on the LinkedOut boat.
The boat in question has not disappeared: it is today one of the two Vulnerables. The other having been built for the 2024 edition of the Vendée Globe, with the technological sharpening required in this discipline. All this has a cost, to the tune of 7 million euros per year, it being understood that the TR Racing team, based in Lorient (Morbihan), employs around thirty people. In premises that have been raised from the ground to accommodate the entire team and equipment.
Onboard the teams
“Of course, we can talk about a significant investment but the repercussions are very significantcomments Alexandre Fayeulle. It is a project that literally involves teams within the company, which has a significant impact at a time when work environments are in full transformation, with the quest for meaning and new business models. » The person concerned points out in passing that turnover does not exceed 8% at Advens, compared to more than 20% among its competitors. Clearly, commitment to sailing, even if it is not directly monetizable, generates many positive elements. Always with this ambition to change – a little – the course of things in essential areas. “Quite quickly after launching a business, I realized that I had this true entrepreneurial temperamentsays Alexandre Fayeulle. I was also able to realize that money was far from being a driving force for me. »
Question: are Advens employees moved by this commitment so pronounced outside the purely business sphere? The manager has no problem answering that some 75 employees are shareholders in the company, representing 20% of the capital.
Respect for all stakeholders
Another question: what view does the sailing ecosystem have of the rather particular system claimed by TR Racing, even though the naming for the benefit of this or that association has developed in recent years? “Experience speaks for usreplies Alexandre Fayeulle. To the extent that the inaugural initiatives worked well, I believe I can say that we have the respect of all the stakeholders. »
On the weekend of November 10, the start day of the Vendée Globe, no less than 900 supporters will be present in Les Sables-d'Olonne. Supporters including 150 Advens employees – some of whom were present on the Vulnerable stand to host it – and other very varied profiles, all inclined to support the project. Which should be available throughout the coming months with several meetings planned, starting with a big launch party on November 18 in Paris.
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