Nadia Agoun and Adrien Ventre (BBA EDHEC students) launched into entrepreneurship with Garage Handshaping.

Tell us about yourself

My name is Nadia, I’m 21, and I’m a student on the BBA4 horizon entrepreneurship programme. I’m passionate about Marketing and about Communication in particular. For a long time I’ve enjoyed making videos for the pleasure of it, and so I thought why not share them on social media?

Tell us briefly how your Garage Handshaping project?

The Garage Handshaping project came about during the first lockdown. I should say I work with my boyfriend, Adrien Ventre, who is following the same path as me at EDHEC. What he likes is manual professions. So we thought, why not try to create a project around our shared passion – surfing – and combine two things we love?

Initially the idea was really just to share the steps that go into the manufacturing of a surfboard, making it clear we were beginners. We wanted to create a community of enthusiasts who could discuss the process via comments and share their views and impressions. After we got a huge response to the creation of our first board, CIGALE, we decided to do another one, and then a third, etc. The project began to grow, so we set up a website and then a workshop.

We’re still sharing our advice online, but we now also offer customised boards and a repair service in Nice and the surrounding area. It was all a bit of a snowball effect, but over a relatively short timeframe.

Tell us about your business

Garage Handshaping allows us to showcase the beauty of craft skills, in this case shaping, and we have relied on the importance of sharing in the surfing culture to establish a community. We really wanted to prove that there is no need to have an extremely high level of ability in surfing to successfully take the plunge, as long as you have passion, that’s all you need. We wanted to do something that would reflect who we are, something dynamic and spontaneous, and include an artistic dimension. The values we want to convey are simplicity, honesty and authenticity, and we advocate the transfer of know-how that is being lost to the benefit of industrial firms. Of course there is also the pleasure of having a “Made in Med” offer. It’s important for us to be able to assert our southern identity, for example by naming our boards "Lavender", "Cicada", "Azur", etc. Forget the film cliché of Brice de Nice waiting desperately for a wave! It is absolutely possible to surf in the Med!

Why is it important for you to have products made in France?

First of all, it’s important because we are happy to be able to promote French know-how, adding our own personal touch. I also think that the lockdown made us realise just how dependent we are on the international supply chain and how, little by little, social links are disappearing. Not only when it comes to surfboards but for a huge amount of goods. I think it’s wonderful to be able to give a little something back to my country’s economy by favouring short supply and distribution networks and meaningful exchanges between the manufacturer and consumer. The aim is to build up real relationships. As we see it, it is by accumulating these small initiatives that we can have a real impact on our carbon footprint. What’s more, we manage to combine all that by promoting the region we love!

What is your initial assessment of this entrepreneurial adventure?

It has now been 8 months since we launched Garage Handshaping. I think I have never learned so much as I have since we set about developing this project.

Personally, I have really been able to complement my education in marketing with practical experience. For example, I gave a lot of thought to our brand strategy; I wanted us to have a brand identity quickly and a powerful story to tell so our community could identify with everything we share. I never would’ve thought I’d be able to set up a website, but I made sure I had the means to learn what it took.

Discovering what it means to be an entrepreneur has been highly enriching on a personal level. You learn to dare, to surpass yourself. You need to be able to constantly ask questions of yourself. To be proud while at the same time being humble.

And try not to lose motivation in the face of the obstacles that sometimes seem to be standing in your way …

Adrien and you are BBA EDHEC students; how has that education helped you on your path as entrepreneurs?

First of all, we have the good fortune to have a solid understanding of the way a company works. During our 4 years, we studied various company departments and different approaches to business.

One thing that allows us to really stand out is marketing, an area that we both studied. I think it is a major advantage because we notice that a lot of artisans suffer from a deficit in marketing skills, whether in terms of branding or their digital presence. Developing a brand is not an innate skill, you need a certain number of tools to study your business environment and turn an idea into a tangible reality. We are lucky enough to receive support from Enola Cecot and Nathan Nicolski. Enola has extensive knowledge of board sports and shared her expertise with us so we could better “sell” the project to surfers. As for Nathan, he’s the only one with a background in auditing. He helps us with the figures and takes the time to explain everything related to the books so I can keep an eye on things. Ultimately, between the four of us, we manage to keep nearly everything in-house, which is also a massive saving in terms of both time and money!

How have you been able to continue your studies while managing this entrepreneurial project?

You need to be very very very organised! Some people spend their Sunday evening preparing their meals for the week, whereas we spend it going over everything we have to do and setting out the exact schedule to achieve it. Otherwise we’ll forget to submit some file or an important meeting, or even to take some time out for ourselves. It’s intense, but if it was easy everyone would do it!

What advice do you have for other students looking to become entrepreneurs?

I would tell them: when you have an idea you have to go for it! The advantage of being a student and taking on the world of entrepreneurship is that you have no other constraints other than being a student. Some see that as an obstacle, particularly due to the lack of available financial means, but on the contrary it’s an incredible opportunity not to have any “real” obligations (like a family to manage, a full-time job, monthly payments, etc.). Of course it comes with certain sacrifices. You have to find a small job on the side, you see your friends less, you make time where there is none.

But ultimately it gives you so much maturity and self-fulfilment that I would recommend the experience to anyone who has had the urge to transform an idea into a reality.

What are your expectations from the alumni community?

In early 2021 we would like to overhaul our website to promote our products a bit differently, more professionally (while maintaining our authenticity). Gradually we would like to develop collections rather than just customised products. We would also like to develop the artistic dimension, building on the BINTANG board produced with Lea Vandeveld, an artist and painter who uses recycled make-up.

As for the alumni community, I would love to get their feedback on the project, especially if there are any surfer BBA graduates out there! It would be great to be able to chat to them.

We are currently trying to raise funds to face the ongoing crisis. I think EDHEC’s project workshop has made an impression on many of us, and a lot of people know just how hard it is to find financing. So if they have been struck by our motivation and ambition, they can contribute to our campaign (and what they get in exchange is really attractive AND delivered for Christmas!).