“I don’t see myself as a leader. I never sought to be. I am carried by a mission : that the other children receive the best, as I want for my own children”, declares Mohamed El Mazzouji, founder of Domissori, Reunion Island educational childcare company at home, and project né du start-up studio Educ-up. In 2019. Domissori was one of the first start-ups “accelerated” by the Village by CA in Reunion Island. This is one of the great successes to date in terms of the influence of a company resulting from this local incubator.. Domissori for “Montessori at home”. Declining the work of Maria Montessori in childcare at home, the concept reconnects with the first philosophy of the famous doctor-pedagogue : support for children from very modest backgrounds or children with specific needs. Present in France and Reunion, Domissori now employs more than 1,000 employees, 90% women, mainly operating in priority areas of cities (QPV) and rural areas, where the need for educational support is greatest. In full growth, the company continues to develop from Reunion Island, where it has its headquarters. Domissori does not only innovate in home services. It also does this in financing childcare, as well as in its operation. Lack of vertical managerial direction, it is based on a decentralized organization by implementing a concept of responsible intrapreneurship : it gives employees the means to act as entrepreneurs on the scale of their territories. The result is clear. Growth champion four years in a row, from 2023 to 2026, in the Les Échos-Statista ranking (first in the “Overseas” and “Education” categories), Domissori is also winner of the Impact 40/120 index from the Impact France Movement, which places it among the “Impact Unicorns” : it is considered one of the 40 most promising impact companies in France. Mohamed El Mazzouji is included in the list of 40 leaders most committed to serving the general interest of the Choiseul Institute. Favorite prize from the Medef Business Awards in 2025, he is also the winner of the 2025 Moroccan World Trophies in the “Societal Engagement” section.. Last September, he was invited to the Élysée, with 14 other members of the Impact France Movement, to discuss with the advisors of the President of the Republic the future of this emerging sector which places the economy at the service of social progress and the general interest. October 28, he was once again received at the Élysée by the President of the Republic to reflect on the impact of social networks and screens on children.
(from left to right) Cyrielle Durand, recruitment manager, Sadjida Hossenbaccas, territorial legal representative, Cécile Clain, HR project manager. To the right : in September 2025, among the members of the Impact France Movement received at the Élysée Palace.
Meeting Leader : You have been received several times at the Élysée. What do you remember? ?
Mohamed el Mazzouji : These meetings symbolize recognition at the highest level of impact entrepreneurship to which I belong. The founders and managers of impact companies are driven above all by the objective of positively transforming society, to meet the needs of individuals, of the collective in general – whether in ecology, health, food or, in my case, education. This last theme seems fundamental to me for the future of our society.. So what struck me, it is that impact entrepreneurs are received at the Élysée Palace to reflect on the future of our country.
When you were a research engineer at the Atomic Energy Commission (CEA), Were you already involved in community life? ?
My commitment to education dates back to my student years. I come from a working class background. Personally, I was lucky to be supported in my educational journey, with a caring posture, by my illiterate parents. The majority of children from these backgrounds do not have this chance. Their parents do not have suitable educational tools, they are sometimes not even aware of their existence. During my studies, I became involved very early in supporting disadvantaged children to help them flourish in the school system. It was already my issue : not learning as such because I believe it is natural in a child but better preparation of the environment conducive to this learning, passing mainly through the family home. This commitment continued throughout my engineering career, during which I have always evolved in the associative environment on a voluntary basis. Until the day I decided to act differently by becoming a social entrepreneur and giving birth to a new vision through the Domissori project.
Is it correct to say that academic failure is more linked to the family environment than to the school itself? ?
I do not point to the family environment as the cause of academic failure. My observation, it is not possible to look at this problem of the education of our children only from the angle of the educational system. In France, academic results have been declining for more than 20 years, to the point that our country now ranks among the worst in the OECD. However, educational success does not only depend on the school system : the family environment, social, urban, in which the child evolves plays a determining role. I have decided to dedicate my life to identifying and trying to act on all the parameters that I believe are possible to change in the children's environment.. My goal : offer them a better future and thereby, I hope so, contribute to improving the results of national education.
Was the work of Maria Montessori the trigger for creating Domissori? ?
It was when I became a father in 2013 that I discovered Maria Montessori. In the associative environment where I accompanied adolescents, resources on early childhood support were rare and most often limited to health aspects : health, food, sleep, growth. I wondered how to support a young child educationally. I then discovered the action of Maria Montessori, which touched me deeply. His legacy, which we find today in the eponymous schools, fascinated me. It demonstrated that children from very poor backgrounds, orphans, abandoned or traumatized, who were not even meant to go to school, achieved exceptional academic results thanks to its educational approach. Today, modern Montessori schools exist all over the world, but they are expensive. They de facto exclude low-income families. I created Domissori to make this approach accessible to as many people as possible and rediscover the initial meaning of Maria Montessori's work..
In what way ? By providing educational content for home childcare ?
Indeed. Montessori pedagogy is perceived only as school learning. I considered it useful to revive it and to think about an educational approach that would go beyond the purely academic dimension by bringing it into homes., at home, and putting it in the hands of parents. This is how the idea of Domissori came about : “Montessori at home”.
How was this idea received? ? You have never encountered opposition, of skepticism ?
Some of the disciples of Montessori schools criticized me. To answer them, I just had to ask them if their establishments were aimed at families without means., to orphaned or traumatized children to whom Maria Montessori devoted herself. Another remark that people make against me, is that this type of educational approach to children is not limited to “Montessori”. That's right, but the vision of Maria Montessori touched me personally : what link, what relationship should we build with the child ? How can he develop this potential within him?, that is specific to him regardless of his social background and the family to which he belongs ? I also experienced the obstacles inherent to any business leader who innovates. But overall, we have been supported from our start – just before the Covid health crisis –, particularly in Reunion. By actors who understood the project and contributed to what it is today.
Your economic model combines private and public. How is it innovative? ?
Subject to having the necessary approvals, any company providing childcare services at home allows its client families to be eligible for financial aid from the CAF. Personal services also provide access to tax advantages such as the tax credit of 50% of the amount incurred., aid now modernized thanks to a public administration system called “Immediate Advance”. This model of cooperation between private and public, all home service and childcare companies can benefit from it. Where Domissori invents, it is on the remainder borne by the families. CAF aid covers a maximum of 85% of childcare costs. The remaining 15%, even if it’s only a few dozen euros, remain a financial obstacle for low-income or precarious families. This brake therefore prevents them from benefiting from the CAF. Our innovation lies in a “parental scholarship” model, created in partnership with the Ed’Solidaire association. This scholarship covers the remaining expenses, allowing 100% coverage of childcare for the poorest families. We were pilots, and therefore the first to offer this solution to families. I hope it will develop with other childcare players.
In 2023, Educ-up successfully raises funds of 7 million euros. Three years later, the Domissori company has become profitable. It is now present in 15 departments and employs more than 1,000 people.. How do you manage this exponential growth ?
The fundraising did not only promote the development of Domissori : Educ-up, as a start-up studio, pursued other activities. Regarding Domissori, the company was from the start designed to be able to deploy throughout France. Domissori reached its break-even point at the end of 2025. To achieve this, we had the objective of 1,000 home workers. But for us, talking about growth is above all talking about the social impact of Domissori. Rigorous management is at the service of this project and our growth is a lever to amplify this impact. Our employees have educator profiles. They are employed on permanent part-time contracts. We develop their personal potential, we support them and unite them around this mission for the educational success of all children. They operate in priority neighborhoods as well as in rural areas. We recruit locally – particularly in priority neighborhoods –, closer to families. Each stakeholder thus has an impact on the parents, who are supported ; about children, who are accompanied ; and also on the local economy of the neighborhoods. To manage business growth, the number one challenge was to reach this profitability threshold in an increasingly difficult social and economic context. The challenge now, it is to manage this growth with rigor while remaining anchored in Reunion, where Domissori was born. I am proud to continue to promote a Reunion project throughout France.
What is Domissori’s governance? ?
She is unusual. The company does not have a manager but leaders ; the organization chart is not vertical, it is rather decentralized. With us, RH stands for “Human Revelations”. Our organization is based on two pillar roles : the guards, who ensure the smooth running of the company ; and developers, which stimulate its growth. A balance is needed between the two. In the current period of the life of society, a little more complex due to the global economic context, it is essential to simultaneously manage growth and profitability.
How does it all work? ?
To the teams, I often describe Domissori as “a living organism evolving in stages”. More precisely, “like a butterfly”. We started from the egg : the original idea germinated for three years (2017 to 2019). From this egg a caterpillar was born which developed very slowly and in an unstructured manner. (2020 to 2022). We then entered the chrysalis stage : it was about carrying out the internal transformation of Domissori in order to prepare the company for its takeoff (2023 to 2025). Each of these phases therefore took three years. Now, having reached profitability and our threshold of 1,000 stakeholders, we take flight like a free and harmonious butterfly and we hope that it will one day become a monarch butterfly, from 2026 to 2028. This metaphor guides our development, both collective and individual. Each individual joining the project follows this evolution from egg to caterpillar, then the chrysalis, and finally the butterfly. He then becomes an autonomous leader and takes flight. In turn, it can support the hatching of future butterflies within our organization. !
Your role is to be the leader of leaders ?
I don't see myself as a leader. I never sought to be. I gave myself a mission : that the other children receive the best, as I want for my own children. Entrepreneurship is not just about ambition, figures or fundraising : it is above all a desire to concretely improve people’s lives. This is how we generate human impact. Our customers understand this : we are not guided by turnover alone, but by the deep desire to help them in their roles as parents. They perceive this sincerity. Other business leaders are experiencing this, I am convinced of it. And many budding entrepreneurs could take inspiration from it.
Educ-up has also created a distance learning center : Edacademy. For what purpose ?
What skills are required for childcare? ? For children under 3 years old, early childhood training ; for children over 3 years old, no training ! Go further, like we do in Domissori, requires understanding children, their needs, the issues around their development not only physical but also intellectual, cognitive, emotional and relational. These are skills that are acquired by professionals. Our first collaborators were often educators from Montessori schools. It quickly became necessary to train our teams. Edacademy is a training center specializing in personal service and early childhood : to its diploma courses such as CAP, BEP or professional baccalaureate, we add the Montessori approach adapted to the home, parenting support, managing emotions and stress in adults but also in children. Edacademy is chaired by Abdelaali El Badaoui, a major figure in social innovation and public health in France. It is Edacademy which designs these training courses.
The development of Domissori continues in the form of a franchise. You announced a target of 50 franchisees. Where are you ?
From left to right : up, the Reunion team and that of Perpignan, Montpellier and Marseille ; down, the Chambéry team and the Paris team.
Firstly, we are continuing our development through “organic growth” – to use business jargon. On the other hand, we have in fact decided to accelerate it by opening the model to franchisees. Mainly in working-class neighborhoods in areas where Domissori is not directly established. We support franchisees for a period of one year, the time they can open and develop their franchises in these territories. “Develop” means, for us, create jobs as home educators and provide our solutions to parents, especially in these modest environments. Nowadays, we have identified ten future franchisees. We are in the process of supporting them so that they start their activity during the year 2026. For the next three years, the objective is 50 franchisees.
Is Reunion affected? ?
Ideally, we would like four franchisees on the island. We currently employ around fifty workers there.. The headquarters of Domissori being in Saint-Denis, activity is mainly present in the north. With an unemployment rate more than double the national rate and a birth rate higher than in France, the potential is enormous and Domissori could do much better. We would like to implement it in the four northern sectors, sud, east and west of the island. This will involve identifying four future business leaders who will have Domissori exclusivity in their territories..
How many children benefit from your educational childcare ?
I would say that around 12,500 have been or are accompanied. We passed the milestone of 5,000 families by the end of 2025, including 80% in priority urban or rural areas. A family is supported for at least 12 months with at least four hours of home intervention per week. We do not offer one-off support, which allows us to produce a real impact over a long time.
Are these children being monitored to see if their schooling benefits? ?
Monitoring is done by the parents. They take responsibility for this. At the end of the support year, their feedback is clearly favorable. What comes first, it is the evolution of the relationship between the child and his parents – a major axis in the development of children. The parents, as far as they are concerned, discover other ways of supporting their child than the “the hard way” method that they have generally experienced themselves. We would like to follow the journey of these children over an even longer period of time., be able to see in 20 years that they have had a success rate in society that is significantly higher than children who were not supported.
Reunion is the cradle of your project. Does the island continue to occupy a special place in your national system? ?
I left the CEA in May 2019. I came to Reunion. In September 2019, Domissori was born. In October, I joined the Village by CA. A month later, I obtained my first funding thanks to Initiative Réunion. I see this island as Domissori's mother. My attachment to it is very strong. I am particularly keen to maintain the seat there. I mentioned the Village by CA and Initiative Réunion but other local actors supported us. I cannot name them all but I am thinking in particular of the Réunion region.. She contributed greatly, including financially, to ensure the development of Domissori outside the Reunion Island territory. I am very grateful to all these local actors : they allowed us to reach the break-even point and, Thus, to continue the adventure in better conditions.
You have just joined the Bpifrance accelerator. What does this program bring to you? ?
Bpifrance Réunion is one of the actors that I have just mentioned. It is now the Bpifrance accelerator which supports us in our transformation to become a mature, mid-sized company. (ETI). Indeed, Domissori is now on a trajectory towards mid-cap status. Consultants work with us : they help us succeed in this transformation. We also joined the state program “ÉTIncelle”, which supports small and medium-sized businesses in their growth to become ETIs. We are proud to be part of the recent promotion of this program. He too will help us make this change of scale.
Set a limit for Domissori development ?
Non, no limits ! What drives us, it’s the positive social impact : contribute to educational success in working-class neighborhoods. We do not give ourselves a numerical objective but a commitment objective to act as best we can on a daily basis..
Do you have any plans for geographic expansion? ?
If one day Domissori covered 100% of the priority districts of cities – which, for us, are “high potential neighborhoods” –, we could then consider going to see other countries. I would like to contribute to the development of Africa, where I come from through my parents. It's a dream, a duty and as the expression says : The sky is the limit…
FROM ASSOCIATIVE ENGAGEMENT TO IMPACT ENTREPRENEURSHIP
Mohamed El Mazzouji is originally from Beaucaire (Gard). Graduate of the National School of Arts and Crafts (Alone), he followed a career as an engineer, notably at the Atomic Energy Commission. Involved very early in the educational community, he laid the foundations of the Educ-up concept in 2016. It was in 2019 that he moved to Reunion Island and created Domissori after joining the village by CA.
