The Entreprise du Patrimoine Vivant (Living Heritage Company, or EPV) label is a mark of recognition of the French State, put in place to reward French firms for the excellence of their traditional and industrial skills. Created by the Law on SMEs of 2 August 2005 (Article 23), the EPV label may be awarded "to any undertaking that has economic heritage, consisting in particular of rare, renowned or ancestral skills which draw on a mastery of traditional or technically advanced techniques, and restricted to a particular geographical area".