Ex-consultant Raphaël Jatteau launches park sharing app Cocoparks

Building on years of experience as a transport and mobility consultant at Oliver Wyman, Raphaël Jatteau has launched a new parking app – Cocoparks.

Backed by a comprehensive database of more than 200,000 parking spaces in over 500 car parks across Paris, Nice and Bordeaux, Cocoparks is an app that drivers can consult when looking for parking in these French cities. The app provides all the available options on nearby streets and carparks, complete with information on availability and pricing.

In an opinion piece for La Tribune, Jatteau highlighted how an average motorist spends 20 minutes driving around to find a parking spot in Paris, which makes the pursuit of parking itself responsible for 60% of urban pollution. Jatteau’s app is aimed at reducing some of these times.

“I have been passionate about transport and mobility for a very long time and I wanted to find a solution to three major needs of city dwellers: reducing their carbon footprint, reducing expenses, and saving time. By providing an innovative solution to the parking problem, we respond to these three challenges,” he told French media platform Consultor.

Jatteau is a Master in Transportation Engineering from the University of California at Berkeley, and began professionally at global strategy and management consultancy Oliver Wyman. With three years at the firm’s Paris office and another two years in London, Jatteau rose through the ranks of Consultant, Associate and eventually Engagement Manager with a transportation focus.

Over the last four years, he worked in the senior ranks of Heppner – a logistics company focused on land, air and maritime solutions. Leveraging all this experience – nearly a decade – in the transport sector, Jatteau broke off in August to launch Cocoparks. So far, the venture is entirely self-funded, although reports suggest that Jatteau is planning a funding round early next year.

The extra money will help him scale Cocoparks beyond its current focus on Paris, Nice and Bordeaux, while also giving him a leg up against his competitors – OPnGO, Zenpark, Path to Park and Parkopedia to name a few. The number of companies coming up in this space signal the increasing issue of urban congestion.

With much of Europe leading the way in urban mobility innovation, such eco-friendly and convenient parking apps are likely to pick up in popularity. In his opinion piece, Jatteau pointed to the Coronapistes in Paris – bicycle channels created to streamline urban traffic during Covid-19. According to him, such arrangements might well be here to stay.

Shifting priorities in urban centres will likely require a rethink of city planning, particularly when it comes to traffic congestion. Jatteau’s Cocoparks has positioned itself well as a solution of the future.