Summary: A little something different for you this week: I had the privilege of attending La French Touch Conference here in Paris in May of this year-- it’s an event that brings together French and international entrepreneurs to discuss what makes France shine, to define just what exactly that French touch is. They come from all over, having founded and built out companies around the world, to share their experiences on stage, passing on lessons learned and best practices to those gathered in the audience. This year, among other distinguished guests, the Secretary of State for Digital Affairs, Mounir Mahjoubi, addressed the crowd, highlighting some of the positive developments that have taken place in France over the past few years, making the country a much friendlier place for startups. The event, which now holds editions in New York, San Francisco, Paris, and upcoming this October in Toronto, was begun in 2013, by entrepreneur Gael Duval. He and his team put entrepreneurs, investors, and innovators from all sectors together to create a rich microcosm of the French startup ecosystem at each edition. I caught up with a couple of the speakers at the conference to chat with them about their experiences as founders, and what they got out of their participation in the French Touch Conference. I spoke to Julien Callede, Co-Founder of Made.com, the French-founded multi-million dollar e-commerce furniture startup that skyrocketed to success in London, and Mohamed Haouache, Co-Founder and CEO of New York-based Storefront, the world’s leading platform for booking commercial spaces to use as pop-up stores. If you’re interested in hearing more stories like Julien and Mohamed’s, check out La French Touch Conference’s website at lafrenchtouchconference.net, and attend one of their next editions!
