BUSINESS SECTORS

Home to over 124,600 businesses, Lille and its region have a diverse, fast-growing economy that reflects the energy and resilience of Northern France as a whole. Strengths in industry, farming and trade draw on century-long traditions and a store of cultural and human expertise.

Accounting for over 5% of national GDP, Northern France has the country’s no. 4 regional economy, and ranks third in both exports and industry. Top-tier clusters in automotive, railway, logistics, food industry, life sciences and more testify to its diversity, and underscore its ability to adapt quickly to a fast-moving environment.

Logistics3rd logistics region Outstanding transport infrastructure 5,600 companies Over 58,000 employees Land & building costs among the lowest in Europe

Automotive 2nd automotive region  55,000 employees 4 car manufacturers (Toyota, Peugeot/Citroën/Fiat, 2 Renault) Over 200 rank-1, 2 or 3 equipment manufacturers 563,002 vehicles manufactured in 2009 A great variety of training schemes tailored to each study level A well developed R&D activity i-Trans competitiveness cluster

Railway 1st railway region  France’s densest rail network 4 of the world’s top manufacturers of cars Over 100 specialized suppliers and sub-contractors € 1 bn turnover Over 20 research and training institutions  Over 1,800 public researchers  i-Trans competitiveness cluster

Life sciences 3rd largest cluster in France for healthcare & biotechnologies 810 companies 23,000 employees 6.5 billon € turnover Over 300 research laboratories and academic research teams: Nutrition Health & Longevity cluster  The densest European University Hospital site 15,000 students in life sciences 5 universities / schools specialised in life sciences

Food Industry Over 500 companies 27,000 jobs€9 bn sales Specialized logistics in agrifood Comprehensive courses in agrifood for ongoing professional training  500 researchers  The Seafood  industry cluster  The Nutrition, Health and Longevity cluster

Eco-industry500 eco-businesses Over 14,000 employees (10% of national workforce)Over 2,000 subcontractors Over 60 research centers  400 researchers  A unique cluster of expertise in site and soil decontamination

Customer RelationsSecond largest region in France for call center operations Almost 10,000 employees100 centers (Mail-order sales, Direct Marketing & other activities, Banking, finance, insurance   A wide range of training courses in the field of customer relation 11,000 foreign students307,000 French people with foreign origin as well as foreign residents in Northern France.

Mail Order & e-commerceEuropean Capital of Mail Order Sales (MOS) 200 Mail Order companies 30,000 jobs Annual sales of €6.8 billion Major MOS companies have developed an e-commerce activity 900 companies (DM & Web agencies, Call centers, Logistics companies, Financial companies) France's first Master's Degree in Direct MarketingWorld-Class Retail & Trade Industries Cluster (PICOM)