“I saw in the eyes of the incubator director that he really believed in my project”: at school they already saw themselves as bosses

Wait until you have more bottles before starting? This is not what these three entrepreneurs chose, who made training the cradle of their project. Maxence Guintran decided to create his own business largely thanks to his school.

Trustoo, used car inspector

“I studied in Paris, then I was accepted into the Emlyon business school in Lyon. But to move, I had to buy a used car, which wasn’t too expensive,” he recalls. The problem is that he doesn’t know anything about it and wouldn’t want a low price to mean an expensive repair six months later.

“So I started looking for a service that could inspect vehicles and advise me. “But Maxence finds nothing except a friend who loves cars and agrees to help him. “It was a revelation. Why shouldn’t people like him be paid to provide this service? » He created Trustoo on a simple principle. When a person wants to have a used car inspected, the company sends an auto technician (garage mechanic, technician, etc.) to the site. For this consultation, the client pays from 199 to 299 euros, depending on the type of car.

So this son, grandson and nephew of entrepreneurs comes to Emlyon with his idea, his first website and general terms of sale drawn up in the summer. “There you realize that you have to make a lot of concessions regarding social life, evenings, etc. This puts you in a strange position in relation to others,” admits the young entrepreneur. But after investing time and money, you have to go for it. The following year, Trustoo was accepted into the Emlyon incubator, an ideal place to support the first steps. “You benefit from the space provided, the advice, the opportunity to hire an intern,” he explains. But there is something even more valuable. “I saw in the eyes of the incubator director that he really believed in my project. »

The company is making progress faster than Maxence is learning. “Managing both sides is not easy,” admits the young boss. I have had to postpone items until next year several times. “He will finally finish his studies in May of this year. For its part, Trustoo didn’t wait for the ceremony to become a hit. With more than 60,000 vehicle inspections per year, five employees and more than 1,000 service providers in its region, the company is targeting a turnover of 2 million euros this year.

UMI, a platform dedicated to women

The concept was born from the founder’s personal experience with endometriosis. “I was diagnosed while studying at engineering school. A long struggle ensued,” says Clémence. With an average medical delay of seven years between diagnosis and appropriate treatment, women suffering from this pathology face a real lack of information and specialists.

“This experience allowed me to understand gynecological health in a broader sense. The problems encountered with endometriosis are similar to those seen with PCOS (polycystic ovary syndrome) or even menopause. Everything is complicated for these patients,” Clemence laments.

Keen to offer a truly useful service, an engineering graduate is starting a new course at Essec Business School. “I see this as a tool to support this project. » A young woman, for example, is involved in the school’s Innovation and Health Research Department when UMI joins her incubator. At the same time, she is taking entrepreneurship courses to learn how a business works or how to raise funds, or even targeted courses in healthcare to better understand the sector. “Also, there is a network of the school and alumni, which is incredible. I could talk to experts for hours. I never thought that they would so easily agree to give me time,” Clémence is still surprised.

Created in December 2023, the umisante.fr platform already hosts a number of resources, including around 1,000 patient-recommended caregivers, a directory of specialists, an information blog and an online store offering health and wellness products. But when you are also a student, sometimes you need to be able to slow down. “I have to juggle different priorities, business, exams… I also have to decide to put part of my student life on hold,” admits someone who sometimes runs away in the middle of class to get an important call.

Detective Box, the investigation will continue.

“Joining the incubator allowed me to take on my first intern somewhere other than in the kitchen,” smiles Emily. The entrepreneur launched Detective Box while finishing her studies at GEM (Grenoble École de Management) in Isère. “During my studies, I was focused on paying off my student loans. I preferred fixed-term contracts to internships and did everything possible to be ready to launch my project after receiving my diploma,” says the former fellow. His idea at that time was related to youth hostels. While in the United States, she discovered a collection of investigation games that could be played at home. “I was immediately drawn to the concept,” Emily recalls.

Thus was born the idea for Detective Box, an experience halfway between a board game and a detective series. This will be carefully considered at GEM, where Emily will meet with business creation experts and other project managers. At the end of 2022, she managed to raise 140,000 euros. “It was truly the start of a business!” » The following year, Detective Box’s turnover reached 2.5 million euros. Today it offers its customers two investigations, divided into three episodes, which combine investigation, quest game and immersive 360° experience.

The former student from Chambery (Savoie) still has ideas for developing this concept. Tomorrow Detective Box will reach the UK, then the United States, before joining Germany and Spain. Enough to require a boost. “Today there are seven of us. The goal is to reach the age of ten this summer,” the business manager announces.