Web entrepreneurs, a book co-authored by Jonathan LASCAR

This book on the beginnings of the internet giants is designed to take the mystery out of entrepreneurship in France.

Written in the form of interviews, the book gives the reader the impression of spending a private moment with the founders of a few carefully selected firms (RueDuCommerce, PriceMinister, Sarenza...).

It brings three main points to the fore:

- demystification of the ‘great idea’. With the aim of showing how the selected projects came into being, the approach paradoxically shows that an idea doesn’t have to be revolutionary to succeed. On the contrary, simplicity is often the key to success.

- operational development. The focus here is on the how the businesses began (Kelkoo, Dailymotion, Aufeminin, etc.), the way the idea or concept first appeared, and then how the project came into being.

- the need for funding and a methodology. While some firms raise cash from private investors (Business Angels) and others from investment funds or own capital, the book points to the pros and cons of each form of generating capital.

Jonathan Lascar 

After graduating from EDHEC Business School with a finance specialisation, Jonathon was hired a s a consultant for the American agency, Accenture. Highly motivated and passionate about entrepreneurship, he launched his first business, QuelSeminaire.com, in June 2009, which he sold at the end of 2010 to a communications group. 

Today he works as a fund raiser at the Internet Venture Capital agency, and is one of the founders of Accélérateur, a firm that invests in and supports a pool of young web start-ups.