Discover the 10 finalists project of “Concours 4S”, the innovation contest by the french bank Crédit Mutuel.
Since 2020, Crédit Mutuel’s Concours 4S rewards innovative projects serving the local area, solidarity, the environment or culture.
After four weeks of submissions, the juries have chosen the 10 finalists, who will be supported by Crédit Mutuel experts. On June 6, they invite you to the Cité du Design in Saint-Étienne for the grand finale, in which four of them will win the grand prize of €4,000.
Discover Lianeli, Boostaferme, Adapt & Joy, 6h55, IciSanté, Coating Edge, Coup de Pousse, Sacha and Épât’Moi, the 2024 candidates of the Concours 4S.
Lianeli – Ensuring that screening information is accessible to all
Founded by Maëlle Bacot, Denis Maillet, Julien Peron and Désiré Arra
“Today, 100,000 lives can be saved through personalized diagnosis.” This is the starting point of Lianeli, a web platform that helps you to find and plan the right diagnostic tests.
Founded by Maëlle Bacot, Denis Maillet, Julien Peron and Désiré Arra, Lianeli informs its users about the various diagnostic tests to do, taking into account more than 120 criteria, including lifestyle, medical history and family history. Thanks to a complete survey that takes less than 10 minutes to complete, the user obtains a summary of the check-ups to do, among 20 pathologies and 5 themes – cancer, cardiovascular, metabolic, infectious and degenerative.
“Lianeli is not meant to replace the doctor. In fact, the platform and results can be shared with medical staff to help them understand and adjust recommended testing and follow-up,” explains Maëlle.
Lianeli’s algorithm is based on research carried out by the Hospices Civils de Lyon and the Faculty of Medicine, and has been field-tested with patients, doctors and public and private companies. “The recommended check-ups offered by the platform are based on the national recommendations of the French National Authority for Health (Haute Autorité de Santé). Today, the French government organizes 3 examinations, recommended by age group – colorectal cancer, breast cancer and cervical cancer – whereas more than 25 exist. We’re simply making the information available to everyone.” explains Maëlle. On a daily basis, an independent scientific committee made up of general practitioners and specialists guarantees the confidentiality of all medical data.
In the next few weeks, the team will be launching the product to the general public. As part of the competition, Lianeli hopes to gain visibility, develop its network and make its actions known to new stakeholders. “We hope that Lianeli will be a great success, that screening will become accessible to all, and that we’ll be able to save many lives!,” concludes Maëlle
Boostaferme – Making it easier for farmers to access subsidies
Founded by Hugo Grel and Samuel Oddon
“There’s a lot of subsidies, but only a few are accessible. It’s a real administrative jungle where farmers don’t get that much help.” explains Hugo Grel. He and Samuel Oddon, both sons of farmers, are well acquainted with the administrative and financial problems encountered in the agricultural sector. In 2023, they launched Boostaferme, an online platform that facilitates access to subsidies for farmers.
The user creates its profile, fills in a survey, and in just a few minutes, the platform suggests the most appropriate types of subsidies. Thanks to the information provided by the farmer, the platform pre-fills in the application forms, saving time for the worker who “works 70 hours a week, not counting the time spent on administration.”
The team is currently working on the platform and its future improvements. Through the Concours 4S, Boostaferme aims to gain visibility and take benefit from Crédit Mutuel’s local presence, so that it can work directly with farmers to understand their needs and develop the product.
2minutesmax – 2 minutes to convince recruiters
Founded by Nicolas and Juliette Bernard
2minutesmax is the story of a family business, created by Nicolas Bernard and his daughter Juliette. When she was still a student, Juliette was looking for a short-term internship: to convince recruiters, she made a video presentation posted on social networks.
A few months later, this innocent gesture gave Nicolas and Juliette the idea to create 2minutesmax, a video creation platform for candidates, allowing recruiters to better target the personalities, ambitions and passions of each individual before proposing an interview.
“We really wanted to create a tool to complement the CV, in which you can put everything you want to develop, express who you are, in short: say everything you can’t say on one page.” explains Nicolas.
It’s designed to be as easy to use as possible, for candidates and recruiters. “Candidates log in, create an account and a video profile. Once the video is completed and published, they get a QR code and a personalized link to send to recruiters, which only those recruiters have access to.” adds the cofounder.
The team, already made up of four people since the launch, aims to stabilize the model, manage its first customers and work on a communication campaign dedicated to recruiting work-study students. Thanks to the Concours 4S, 2minutesmax hopes to gain visibility, immerse itself in the start-up ecosystem, and benefit from exchanges with entrepreneurs and actors in the ecosystem.
Adapt & Joy – Customize clothing for every type of disability
Founded by Maureen Descombes
With Adapt & Joy, Maureen wants to put her passion for sewing at the service of a cause close to her heart. The story begins with her cousin, living with a polyhandicap, and her mother, who struggles to find clothes adapted to her daughter’s needs. This is the starting point for Adapt & Joy, a second-hand marketplace for clothes adapted to different types of disability. “The aim is to give people with disabilities more autonomy, but also to relieve caregivers.”
To create the most suitable garments possible, Maureen works with specialists such as ergotherapists, psychomotricians and care assistants. She also works with families and people with disabilities to identify their needs and propose the most appropriate solutions.
Maureen wishes to make Adapt & Joy a project with a social and environmental impact, by favoring second-hand clothes and collaborating with the “Grenier Tremplin” sewing workshop, a local association that helps people reintegrate into the workforce.
In the coming months, the team will open its platform on Etsy. In the context of the Concours 4S, Adapt & Joy wants to benefit from the support of Crédit Mutuel’s experts and obtain financial aid to invest in sewing equipment.
6:55 – Good bedding for people and the environment
Founded by Emilie Rizzo
After several years in the Paris fashion world, Émilie Rizzo returned to her homeland in the Haute-Loire and found 6h55, a brand of eco-responsible bedding. With 6h55, Émilie offers a sustainable, high-performance alternative to commercially available bedding, often made with chemical and sometimes harmful materials. To do this, Emilie decided to recycle another waste product: sheep’s wool.
“We spend an average of 6h55 in direct contact with the material of our comforter, breathing in these products.” explains Emilie. In partnership with local producers, she gives a second life to wool to create quality bedding that is chemical-free, responsible and healthy for the human body, while reducing the environmental impact of the textile industry.
“I chose to work with wool from farms near me because it represented a deadweight loss for farmers. The wool that I collect is transformed in a new way. que, healthy and natural in biodegradable, anti-acarina and thermoregulating virgin wool”. explains Émilie.
Marketing has already been running for several months, with direct sales as a way of forging closer links with consumers and raising awareness of the importance of good bedding. In the coming weeks, the team intends to pursue its B2B development and, why not, open its first physical sales outlet in the near future. During the Concours 4S, 6h55 aims to develop its network and benefit from feedback.
IciSanté – Enhancing the attractiveness of regions and combating medical deserts
Founded by Maud Bressolette Gagne, Maëlle Bernard, Damien Pellier and Hervé Patry
For several years, Maud was in charge of welcoming healthcare professionals to the Haute-Loire region. This experience made her aware of the reality of medical deserts, and prompted her to co-found IciSanté, which promotes the installation of healthcare professionals in areas struggling to attract medical professionals.
Thanks to the platform, healthcare professionals can assess the attractiveness of their future workplace, based on their life plans. ” On IciSanté, caregivers can exchange with communities and territories, find all the information on the living environment, infrastructures, the organization of liberal professionals as well as the whole medical demographic dimension. Thanks to our platform, they can also discover the job opportunities and unique advantages offered by each region, depending on their life plans.” explains Maud.
Today, IciSanté is already available in communities in Haute-Loire, Loire, Ardèche and in a community in Normandy. The team has just signed a partnership with the AMNEF (Association Nationale des Étudiants de Médecine) to extend their offer to trainees.
For 2024, the team wants to upgrade its website, add more features and attract new users. With the Concours 4s, IciSanté wants to gain visibility, challenge its pitch and exchange ideas with other entrepreneurs.
Coating Edge – Facilitating access to more durable surface treatments
Founded by Clément Breure
Founded by Clément, Coating Edge offers small and medium-sized businesses a surface treatment machine based on magnetron sputtering technology. This technology, already used in the telephone, medical and automotive industries, is very expensive and therefore not widely available. Yet it is far less polluting than other surface treatment methods.
With the support of the Saint-Etienne Télécom incubator, Clément is developing a new machine based on this technology, which is less expensive to buy, to make it more accessible to businesses. “Professionals will be able to gain greater autonomy and versatility, while reducing their environmental impact”., explains Clément
A first prototype of this machine has already been developed. In the next few weeks, Clément intends to finalize his second prototype, start the first corporate tests, forge partnerships and register his patent. In the context of the Concours 4S, Coating Edge wants to develop its network, meet other companies and potential customers, and find financing.
Coup de Pousse – The restaurant voucher that supports sustainable agriculture
Founded by Sophia Akhmatova
Founded by Sophia Akhmatova, Coup de Pousse uses meal vouchers as a CSR lever to enable businesses, companies and employees to support agricultural and food resilience projects.
“5 million people use meal vouchers in France. With Coup de Pousse, we want to turn this everyday tool into a real lever for environmental action.” explains Sophia. With the Coup de Pousse application, users and companies can discover impact projects chosen by the team and support them financially through donations. explains Sophia
In the next few weeks, the team wants to gain more users, implements a partnership strategy, developps its service offering and raise funds. With the 4S Concours, Coup de Pousse wants to test its product on the market and gather user feedback.
Sacha – Simplifying donations to the homeless
Directed by Emilie Lejuez
“I didn’t necessarily want to go into social work, but I was touched by Vagadons’ mission, so I took over the project.”. In 2023, during her studies, Emilie decided to take over Sacha (formerly Vagadons), a dematerialized system of material and digital donations for the homeless.
Consumers can use QR codes in partner stores to buy products or make donations. The products collected are redistributed directly to homeless people, in day centers or during outreach campaigns.
“I’m in a pharmacy, and by scanning the QR code, I can buy a band-aid or a doliprane, or make a donation so that the association can buy them.”, explains Emilie.
Over the next few weeks, the team will be developing its application and going out to meet homeless people to ask them about their needs. Through the Concours 4S, Emilie would like to be accompanied and advised by other professionals, and to work on her sales pitch.
Épât’Moi — The first cocoa-free spread
Founded by Chloé Jullien and Julia Daprato
“There are many environmentally-friendly alternatives available today, except for chocolate, which yet consumes enormous amounts of resources.” This was the initial thought behind Épât’Moi, the first environmentally-friendly chocolate-hazelnut spread without a single gram of cocoa.
“The chocolate industry / production is highly polluting, contributes to deforestation and is conducive to poor working conditions. We wanted to find a responsible alternative without compromising quality and taste.” explain Chloé and Julia, the two founders.
Chloé and Julia collaborated with researchers to design this spread using products sourced exclusively from Europe. The main ingredients are powdered carob – a fruit from the Mediterranean basin that requires little water to grow – and roasted flours without flavoring or processing. Épât’Moi consumes 3 times less CO2 and is half as sweet as a conventional spread.
Épât’Moi’s next steps are to create new spread recipes and start marketing. In the Concours 4S, Chloé and Julia want to expand their network and gain visibility with distributors.
Rafael Da Costa
