Julie Chapon, CEO of Yuka: “I was really confused at first”
It is in Brooklyn that Julie Chapon, co-founder of the Yuka application, and her two partners chose to settle down.
DR
The community's choice.
It was in Brooklyn that Julie Chapon, co-founder of the Yuka application, and her two partners chose to settle down and work for a year, to tackle the American market.
The configuration is original for this new human and professional adventure: a shared accommodation of eleven with five children, in the heart of the residential area of Brooklyn, with its
brownstones,
typical stone houses.
“We all moved to a house south of Prospect Park, an economical choice because rents are exorbitant in New York.
But it was also and above all a way to fully experience this temporary expatriation experience,” she explains.
The arrival.
It was intense for Julie Chapon and her associates, between capricious weather and a loss of bearings, particularly in her favorite field: food.
“I was really confused at first, during my first trips to the supermarket.
We don’t have the references, and I didn’t expect prices to be so high,” she says.
No choice but to adapt.
She multiplies connections in the local ecosystem: the French Tech network, women's networks, and a coworking space populated by entrepreneurs in Brooklyn.
She adopts local
reach out
, and does not hesitate to ask her contacts on LinkedIn who they can recommend to her in New York.
Become known.
Same procedure to develop Yuka’s notoriety.
“We distributed flyers in the street, participated in trade fairs, projected a large advertisement in front of the editorial staff of the
New York Times
.
It’s exciting to have to pitch your project again.”
Yuka already has 500,000 users per month in the United States, just through word of mouth.
“The real challenge now is to find an American media outlet to make itself known to the general public.
There’s not much missing,” Julie believes.
Especially since the start-up has a public health mission, in a country where 40% of adults are obese, and even 50% by 2030 according to Harvard researchers.
From a business point of view, the market is promising: twice as many Americans buy the premium version of the app.
“They are used to paying for any type of service: if you leave less than 15% tip at the restaurant, it means you are not satisfied,” explains Julie Chapon.
yuka.io
Caroline Faucher-Winter, co-president of French Tech NY: “Against all expectations, Americans are not the most accessible”
Arriving in Washington with her entrepreneur husband almost twenty years ago, Caroline Faucher-Winter had to learn to reinvent a role and a place.
Photo Alexandre Winter
To reinvent oneself.
Arriving in Washington with her entrepreneur husband almost twenty years ago, this essential figure of French Tech in New York had to learn to reinvent a role and a place for herself.
The beginnings are chaotic.
She first worked for the representative of the European Central Bank at the IMF, then managed press relations for a visual recognition start-up in New York, before becoming manager of the artist Franck Bouroullec.
“The figures show (unfortunately) that the vast majority of spouses of start-up founders who arrive here are women.
This means they have to invest as much, or even more, in themselves.
This will make every success even more deserved, and every obstacle less painful.”
A high-flying ecosystem.
After having worked for a long time in the shadows to lead the French Tech network in New York, thanks to her interpersonal skills, she inherited the position of co-president of this dynamic network.
And continues to accumulate hats, since she also runs her communications agency Six Heures, in addition to leading the Galion Project, a network of tech entrepreneurs.
“What strikes me again and again in New York is the quality and diversity of the people I meet every day, tech entrepreneurs, artists, industry leaders and students.
The most talented people in their world constantly rub shoulders, it’s a constant stimulation and emulation for me,” enthuses the young woman, seated at Rintintin, a French restaurant in Nolita which has become her HQ.
“
Give first
”.
She, who knew New York before the birth of French expatriate business communities, can only appreciate this relief for newcomers.
“It’s an opportunity, I realize it today: when you are far from your loved ones, you have to recreate a reliable personal and professional local network.
» Against all expectations, Americans are not the most accessible.
“It’s easy to meet New Yorkers, but they don’t open up easily.
But they will be there in case of problems.
They know that hard times can happen to them too.
» The culture of giving and philanthropy is very anchored here.
“The notion of “Give First” is specific to New York society: giving your time, contacts and money nourishes a virtuous circle in relationships.
This is not charity.
It’s an asynchronous win-win (win-win) not yet well understood in France.”
lafrenchtech.com/en
Pascaline Lepeltier, owner of Chambers restaurant: “New Yorkers want to be one step ahead everywhere”
Pascaline Lepeltier, named best sommelier and Meilleur Ouvrier de France, is a renowned restaurateur in New York.
Photo Deogracias Lerma
A demanding market.
This Frenchwoman, named in turn best sommelier and Meilleur Ouvrier de France, is a renowned restaurateur in New York.
Since her arrival in 2009, she has served as sommelier then manager of the Rouge Tomate restaurant in Chelsea, then at Racines in Tribeca, renamed Chambers after the pandemic.
“It is difficult to manage a restaurant in New York, the market is very demanding because the offer is immense.
I have stood out over the years by offering quality and sustainable
products ,
as well as an original selection of wines.”
French
expertise
par excellence… “New Yorkers want to be a step ahead everywhere, to be at the cutting edge, including in terms of oenology,” says Pascaline.
The city of inequalities.
To always be one step ahead and source the best wines, Pascaline travels to the four corners of the world.
Married to an American, she maintains her attachment to New York, but finds the inequalities there even more shocking since the pandemic.
Particularly in his neighborhood of Harlem, where the buildings of Columbia University rub shoulders with social housing and multi-million dollar apartments.
“It’s a city unlike any other in the United States, I love New Yorkers and the opportunities this city offers.
But it is more difficult to approach today, with the explosion in the cost of living.
Several businesses have also closed on our street (
Chambers Street in Tribeca, Editor's note.
) In recent months, we feel that the recovery is still fragile,” notes Pascaline.
chambers.nyc
Claire Obry and Myline Descamps, founders of French Wink: “The French dream is still as powerful in the United States”
After increasing the number of French brand pop-ups between 2014 and 2019, the two entrepreneurs developed an online sales site for French products.
Press Department
A successful pivot.
This shock duo successfully capitalized on France's aura among Americans.
After having multiplied the pop-ups of French brands between 2014 and 2019, the two entrepreneurs developed an online sales site for French products (where we find, pell-mell, Payot cosmetics, Rougié pâtés, biscuits Lu and Bonne Maman), opened a boutique and even launched their clothing brand, including the essential sailor stripes.
“The first years were not easy, I had three children in four years and experienced some big setbacks.
But I met Myline: together, we held on and overcame the obstacles,” says Claire Obry.
“We adopted a digital model very early, which allowed us to switch 100% online during the pandemic,” adds Myline Descamps.
The French Dream.
“The French dream is still just as powerful in the United States,” maintain the two founders.
When they buy products from us, Francophile Americans come to allow themselves to have fun, to take their time.
They seek to rediscover this notion of tasting, of sharing, of a joie de vivre that they associate with France.
This image is a strong vector of compulsive buying.”
The best of both worlds.
“After more than ten years of rich expatriation in New York, we are a mixture of our roots and our experiences,” says Claire Obry.
We have adopted the go-getter and optimistic side of the Americans, but are attached to our French humanist values.
Above all, managing a business founded by women is real added value for our clientele, 80% female.”
And admiring the French woman… “They find us very liberated in our way of wearing little makeup, drinking, smoking or even saying no to our children, without fear of the judgment of others.”
A leitmotif that the founders apply to themselves.
“We are not afraid to try, adapt and try again if necessary.
Life in New York taught us to overcome our limiting beliefs and to surpass ourselves.”
frenchwink.com