đTwo years ago, Hubert identifiedđŻ a major pain point. In Franceđ¨đľ, more than 400 000 disabledâż persons were looking for a job and 10M old bicycle đ˛tires were burn every year. Can we combine social & environmental impact in a single company? YES! In 2017, La Vie Est Belt was born as a socially and environmentally friendly brand producing made in France fashion accessories.
Hubert is an engineer with a passion for product development. He started his career at Decathlon as a product engineer in textile across France đ¨đľand Chinađ¨đł. He lovedâĽď¸ the adventure but he noticed that he was working for the 2nd most polluting industry in the worldđ. To finalize his studiesđŠâđ, he moved a few months to Bogota where he discovered another face of the country. Every Wednesday, he was organizing activities đââď¸for young disadvantaged children the middle of a slum.
When he came back to France with the desire to launch a businessđ, he knew one thing. The mission of his company could not only be Moneyđ°. It will have to be aligned with his values and his quest for a purpose. To identify the products he would focus on, he made his research which led him to two discoveriesđ. More than 320T of tireâď¸ were burn every year and thousands of motivated disabled persons were struggling to find a job. That was the beginning of La Vie est Belt!
Hubert spent the first 5 months of the adventure in his garage trying to designâď¸ the first prototypes with a shoemaker đas mentor. The belts were a good catch for a first product. The 2 first objectives were: the product development with a belt combining functionality, style & pricing and the sale of 100 belts to customers đ¨to validate customerâs interest. He partnered with 3 concept stores and in 3 days, he sold out everything.
Now, Hubert employs đ6 people and 50% of them are disabled. They all share the same passion, vision and wear the same belt. đAs of now, they have produced thousands of products and generated hundreds of thousands of turnoverđ°. Next year, Hubert plans to double the turnover and extend the team! Combing impact and business, that is possible! At La Vie Est Belt, One motto: All actors of a better world! đ
đ đ đ At Our Own Pace And Scale, Everyone Can Aspire To Change The World đ đ đ
La Vie Est Belt –
Romain Sion 