Why am I not creating a new startup?

I’ve remained silent since we’ve recently announced Kwarter’s shutdown. However, this doesn’t mean I was not active in the background 😉

A lot of you have been asking me what am I going to do next? This is in fact something I’ve been thinking about for a long time… When you are considering what you are going to do next, the first question you should ask yourself is « what you do not want to do? ». Surprisingly, after creating 3 startups, what I don’t want to do is create a new one. Not because I didn’t like it. I have been doing startups for 20 years now. The first one with my brother, I was 23 and Manuel was only 18 when we first started groupeReflect (now Emakina France) in 1996. Today Emakina Group (ALEMK) is listed on EuroNEXT and has become one of the largest digital agencies in Europe with more than 600 employees all over Europe. In 2006 I’ve launched blueKiwi Software with Christophe Routhieau and had a blast building one of the most successful Social Software companies in Europe , before selling it to ATOS in 2012. With Kwarter things didn’t go according to plan but I’ve discovered Silicon Valley and learned a lot here.

I’ve lived. I’ve worked. I’ve loved. I’ve failed. I’ve been scared. I’ve succeeded. Today, after all those amazing ventures I know what I really want to do. I want to continue to roll up my sleeves and get my hands dirty alongside other founders. Maybe it’s because I am about to turn 43. After 40, it’s not all about you anymore. I had my shot and I care more about giving back than receiving. Albert Einstein said « The value of a man resides in what he gives and not in what he is capable of receiving ».

I know what you are thinking… You’re like « Here we go again, another digital entrepreneur becoming Venture Capitalist… ». Of course I’ve considered this option but actually I don’t think I’m totally ready to jump to the other side of the table. I am too much of an entrepreneur for that. I want to do stuff by myself. Create things from scratch as I’ve been doing my entire life. I love turning crazy ideas into business.

After all these years in the Silicon Valley I have leaned something important. Innovative startups are everywhere but you can’t afford not to be in Silicon Valley if you want to have a global impact in the digital space. Since I’ve moved to San Francisco I’ve met with hundreds of startups from abroad and I know how difficult it is to enter the Silicon Valley when you’re a foreigner. Competition is fierce, network is key, money and preparation are essential and time-to-market is of the essence.

Today, I want to help foreign founders succeed here because I strongly believe they can see things from a different perspective and create amazing global startups no matter where they come from. So I’ve been asking myself what’s the best way to help international startups thrive in Silicon Valley. I came to the conclusion that the best solution was to offer the right combination of funding, mentorship, education and networking.

This is not something I could do alone. I’ve shared the idea with my partner-in-crime Pierre Gaubil and we’ve immediately decided to do it together. Pierre is an amazing entrepreneur who’s been around in the Silicon Valley for more than 15 years. He knows what it takes to succeed here and we share the same passion for entrepreneurs. Now, having 2 founders is great but 3 is better. When I heard that Geraldine Le Meur was looking for a new venture I offered her to join us and after sharing the project with her, she immediately said yes. Geraldine is a kick-ass entrepreneur with an amazing track record and a great network here in the Silicon Valley. So here we are today the three us with a new project called The Refiners.

The Refiners’ objective is to select twice a year 12 exceptional startups with unbeatable technology , for a 3-months long hands-on program in the Silicon Valley, focused on bridging the cultural gap and building a global roadmap, product/business plan, go-to-market and fundraising strategy. This is more than just an accelerator. It’s a vibrant community of global entrepreneurs ready to mentor and invest exclusively in startups coming from abroad. We proposed fellow entrepreneurs to join The Refiners as mentors or investors and after just a few weeks we’ve been amazed to see more than a hundred digital leaders joining us. We are now in the process of raising an entrepreneur-led fund so we can start accelerating the first startups next September with them.

Our objective is to accelerate 60 startups in the next 3 years and grow our community of entrepreneurs to provide startups with something that we think is more worthy than just money. Mentorship and networking. You can help us by joining The Refiners community on Facebook and referring to us exciting startups that you think deserve to have a global impact. If you want to get more involved you can also join our mentor and investor group, just send me a message and I will give you all the details.

So this is my new venture and I am super excited. I strongly believe we can help foreign startups succeed in the Silicon Valley if we all join our forces.

You were wondering. YES! There are great digital entrepreneurs abroad and here they come!