NEOMA likes to encourage the creative mind in its students. Some of them even become entrepreneurs in their own right. That was what Romane Hulmer did. Romane, a student on the Master in Management programme (PGE) at NEOMA, designed a soap that makes personal hygiene more fun and more educational for children. Its current name is Fun’Soap.

How the project started. “It all started when I was working in a hospital. At first I had no idea what to do or which products to use. Then NEOMA organised a hackathon as part of our course. The students had 5 days to find a solution to a given issue. So I was able to give my project some thought. The work is done as a group, everybody contributes their ideas, and if you get stuck, if you’re not making any progress, then you get help from the coach. So I had the time to research products that could help me resolve my issue. The NEOMA incubator liked my idea, we were able to develop it, and now we have a prototype and are looking for finance. I’m now in partnership with Alexis Corre, who is also a student at NEOMA.

The problems I encountered. Once you have an idea, like our Fun’Soap, people you meet all have an opinion about it. You really have to sift through all the advice. The biggest obstacle I found with a project like this lay in challenging myself. It’s my idea, it’s my baby, I won’t let it go. Telling yourself that it might not work, when you’re convinced that it will, is very hard. We took part in two enterprise competitions, organised by NEOMA Business School and by the Fondation Le Roch-Les Mousquetaires. And we were delighted to win two prizes.

The advice I would share. Sometimes you think you need to have studied at an Ecole Polytechnique to start a business, but that’s not true. You don’t need any particular skills, above all else you need to get support. A little idea can become a great idea, you have to talk about it to everyone you meet, that’s a real help. Do I have a creative personality? Yes, I think so. Every day, as soon as I see a problem, no matter what it is, I write it down in a little notebook and I try really hard to find solutions. That’s a piece of advice I share with everybody.”