Carrying out your market study for a financing application
What a lender looks for in a market study, how to define your area and read public sources, then how to derive a forecast turnover in which every assumption can be checked. Three modules on Inès's fictitious workshop.
Foundational3 modules56 minFree course
2026 rules — verified on September 26, 2026
Figures are tied to dated, sourced tax constants. A module whose rules have changed is flagged for review, and is unpublished automatically beyond 90 days.
By the end of this course, you can…
These outcomes are the modules' own: the promise cannot say anything the course does not teach.
- Name the four elements a market study must describe according to the official business creation guidance
- Explain why the financial forecast flows from the study, and why this course advises rereading your file all the way back to it
- Tell a traceable statement from one that is not
- Decide whether to carry out the study yourself or have it done, knowing what each choice implies
- Define a catchment area and link it to an existing statistical geography
- Know what the census, the permanent facilities database, the activity classification and the household budget survey provide
- Read a public figure together with its reference year, its scope and its definition
- Complete public sources with a field survey whose result can be cited
- Identify the practice rules and supplier constraints that weigh on the activity
- Move from the total market to the captured customer base through named steps
- Build turnover from demand, then check it against capacity
- Choose a defensible market share and state what happens if it is too high
- Compare turnover with the break-even point and carry the assumptions into the forecast income statement
The programme, module by module
Each module has its own page. Durations are derived from the actual text, never announced by hand.
- Module 118 minFree — no accountWhat a lender looks for in a market studyWhat you will be able to do
- Name the four elements a market study must describe according to the official business creation guidance
- Explain why the financial forecast flows from the study, and why this course advises rereading your file all the way back to it
- Tell a traceable statement from one that is not
- Decide whether to carry out the study yourself or have it done, knowing what each choice implies
- Module 218 minFree — no accountDefining your area and reading public sourcesWhat you will be able to do
- Define a catchment area and link it to an existing statistical geography
- Know what the census, the permanent facilities database, the activity classification and the household budget survey provide
- Read a public figure together with its reference year, its scope and its definition
- Complete public sources with a field survey whose result can be cited
- Identify the practice rules and supplier constraints that weigh on the activity
- Module 319 minFree — no accountFrom the market to forecast turnoverWhat you will be able to do
- Move from the total market to the captured customer base through named steps
- Build turnover from demand, then check it against capacity
- Choose a defensible market share and state what happens if it is too high
- Compare turnover with the break-even point and carry the assumptions into the forecast income statement
What you take away
A handout you keep, not just a page you read. The sections are derived from the course itself: what is announced here is exactly what gets generated.
Participant handout (PDF)
PDF
- Learning objectives (3)
- Key figures (3)
- Mistakes to avoid (3)
- Official sources (3)
Exercise workbook (Word)
Word
- Learning objectives (3)
- Key figures (3)
- Mistakes to avoid (3)
- Official sources (3)
Answers live in a separate appendix: the participant handout and the workbook stay distributable before the exercise.
Download the handouts
Where this course leads
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Go further
The courses that follow on from this one.
Educational content, current with the sources cited. It does not replace advice tailored to your situation. These courses are neither certifying nor CPF-eligible: they prepare for no certification registered with the French RNCP or specific register.