“You are a student and dream of starting your own business? Do you have a lot of ideas and the desire to make them a reality? Because creating a company can seem like a huge step to take when you lack experience, the INSEEC Incubator offers professional and personalized support to students with these projects. Clara Fresnel, a 2016 graduate of an MSc Marketing, Communication and Business Strategies and now the head of her company, has benefited from this assistance and looks back on her experience.
You are the creator of IDO DATA, can you explain the concept ?
Ido-data is a startup that was co-founded in 2016 by 4 partners : Yannick Tocquet, Thomas Creveaux, Antonin Carlesso and myself, Clara Fresnel.
Ido-data’s vocation is toexploit cardiac, movement analysis and geolocationdata to prevent risks and reinforce security. Thus, we design innovative connected warning objects adapted to your uses.
In this context, we have developed 2 first products:
Dial, Individual Alert and Location Device
Dial is a bracelet designed to reinforce the safety of water sports enthusiasts, developed in partnership with the SNSM lifeguards and Mr Philippe Starck who designed it.- Ekily, the application that takes care of your horse’s well-being. Thanks to the connection with heart rate belts, we indicate to the rider the form indices of his horse so that he can better manage his health and his trainings.
What was the trigger that gave birth to your project?
At the beginning, I was the carrier of the Ekily project in horse riding, which is my passion. It was during my work-study experience during my Master 2 that the idea surfaced. Then, with a business plan that I thought made sense, I decided to talk to Pascal Montagnon, Director of the Lyon incubator, to get an outside opinion. That’s when he offered to help me develop the project in order to present it to the Commitment Committee to join theINSEEC Lyon Incubator.
It helped me a lot to understand what entrepreneurship is and what it involves. If I hadn’t been able to benefit from the incubator’s help, I don’t think my project would have seen the light of day.
How do you get into the incubator?
To join the incubator, you must first be a student or graduate of INSEEC. Then you need to have an idea and, above all, theWANT to undertake !
The first step is the “pre-incubation”, which allows you to see a coach once a week to work on the project, the pitch and the presentation for the Commitment Committee which decides whether or not to integrate the project into the incubator. This committee is generally composed of about fifteen business leaders, Business Angels… We must be prepared for it! Entrepreneurship is above all a HUMAN story, the project leader must inspire dreams and confidence.
An idea and perseverance, that’s what it takes to enter the incubator!
How did the INSEEC Incubator help you?
A great help !
First of all, access to premises, which is important because it allows us to have an adapted and credible working environment, when we receive clients for example. The incubator is also a support from coaches who help us with problems encountered throughout the project The incubator is affiliated with a business school, so it provides support on strategic, financial and commercial aspects.
Finally, one of the greatest strengths of the incubator is the incubates themselves ! The experience of each one and the sharing between all is an enormous wealth. When you set up your project, you have a billion questions : How to get the BPI grant ? How do I know if this quote is on market prices ? Exchanging experiences, successes and failures of others who have gone through the same steps, is one of the best ways to avoid certain mistakes !
What was the most memorable moment of this adventure for you?
For me, the fact that our project Ekily has been selected in the3rd promotion of the Hippolia Startup Village is a very important step in the development of our company (and my project). Indeed, this selection has shown that our service has been recognized by the equestrian market as a product of the future that meets a real need. It is a pride for me and a professional dream that has come true.
Why did you choose the INSEEC MSc & MBA?
I chose the INSEEC MSc & MBA because the Master of Marketing program met all my expectations. INSEEC is a recognized school and offered me the opportunity to follow this master’s degree in alternation.
Everything I have achieved at ido-data speaks for itself. It is the quality of the training that has given me the ability to get to this point.
Was business creation a goal for you when you entered the MSc?
Not at all. I had this ambition to start my own business but later. My objective in joining INSEEC was to gain as much experience as possible and try to integrate the marketing department of a large group. Finally, life opportunities and encounters decided otherwise and I am very happy about it.
Do you have any advice for students in training who want to start their own business?
You have the chance to be in a school where everything is done to support you in your creative project. If you have an idea, talk about it ! The incubator is there to support you and help you grow in the best possible conditions. The rest will depend on your motivation and your ability to overcome the various problems you will encounter.
Entrepreneurship is not a long quiet river, it is hard and nobody will give you a gift but the success is all the more gratifying. I don’t think I’ve ever had as much joy in my professional life as the day our first customers told us how happy they were.
If I had to do it all over again, I’d re-sign a thousand times !
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Updated 24 February 2022