© Too Good To Go
À At only 32 years old, Lucie Basch is at the head of a small empire with Too Good To Go, the application that fights against food waste of which she is the co-founder. Here are 8 things to know about this committed businesswoman, named ” Female Entrepreneur of the Year ” .
Lucie Basch grew up in a family of entrepreneurs
Born in Paris in 1992, Lucie Basch had perhaps her destiny all mapped out. Because for her, entrepreneurship is a family affair. ” No one has ever been an employee in my family “, she confides in an interview with BFM Business. While her parents are involved in entrepreneurship and the liberal profession, her grandparents have also set up their own business. ” We really need freedom and respect for our convictions in what we do “, she continues.
It would also seem that the businesswoman has always had a leadership spirit. ” I was class delegate, captain of the volleyball team, I was the one who organized surprise birthdays for my friends, who planned my family's vacation activities… “, she explains in Les Échos.
She started out at a food giant
With her engineering degree in hand, Lucie Basch was hired by Nestlé in the United Kingdom. She worked in the production plants and very quickly, the young worker did not really feel like she belonged. “I then realized that the way we produce food is absurd“, she tells BFMTV. The figures are alarming: 40% of what is produced ends up in the trash.
Not wanting to endorse this system, Lucie Basch decided to resign. Objective: to create a solution to combat the scourge of food waste. She is convinced that business is an excellent way to change things and give meaning back to her daily life.
She lived in Norway
That's when she decided to set sail and live in Norway for a year. During this time, she thought about how to set up her project. She then looked for developers to help her design an application to combat food waste.
Problem, she quickly realized that entrepreneurs were already working on a similar solution. Rather than moping around, she joined the Scandinavian team. Too Good To Go was born in 2015, then officially launched in Denmark in 2016. The different origins of its co-founders worked in their favor, directly offering an international dimension to the start-up.
She launched the concept of Too Good To Go in France
The same year, the entrepreneur returned to France and launched the free application, open to all. The concept is simple: users can buy unsold food items from local businesses at a reduced price, whether restaurants, bakeries or supermarkets. It's a win-win situation. On the one hand, the retailers sell their unsold items and on the other, the users benefit from a cheap meal.
200% Deposit Bonus up to €3,000 180% First Deposit Bonus up to $20,000The beginnings were still complicated for Lucie Basch, who had to convince retailers to collaborate with her company. But the trend quickly reversed. ” It's grown faster than I could have imagined ,” she admits.
Too Good To Go Reaches New Heights
The company went from 0 to 1,200 employees in just six years. It now has more than 85 million users, collaborates with 250,000 merchants and operates in no fewer than 19 countries, including the United States and Canada. Too Good To Go saves 300,000 meals per day, or 4 per second.
The start-up faced significant difficulties during the pandemic, when its turnover plummeted by 70%. She emerged stronger and today stands out as the leader in the fight against waste, proof of her great resilience. It continues to grow today, particularly through acquisitions.
Such growth can also have negative impacts. In 2021, the Instagram account Balance Ta Startup shared the testimony of current and former Too Good To Go employees. They denounced abuses and constant pressures. Lucie Basch acknowledges mistakes made in particular conditions, the company having experienced a very long period of hyper-growth.
She published a book
Too Good To Go is not Lucie Basch's only project to fight against food waste. This fight is now at the heart of her ambitions. The anti-waste guide, which she co-wrote with Rose Boursier-Wyler, was released in 2019. With a preface by chef Thierry Marx, the book includes many tips to help readers waste less on a daily basis.
She participates in initiatives to promote the fight against waste
In 2020, Too Good To Go launched Le Pacte sur les Dates de Consommation, which aims to clarify the meaning of consumption dates, harmonize them and thereby reduce food waste. It brings together 60 signatories, including manufacturers, distributors, professional federations, consumer and environmental protection associations.
Two years later, the start-up initiated Mon École Anti Gaspi to raise awareness among students about this cause. Kits are made available to teachers and after-school facilitators. They contain a set of resources, including awareness videos, fun posters, and board games. Initially launched for CM1 and CM2 classes, the program was extended in 2023 to all primary classes.
She launched herself into the world of investment
Lucie Basch has recently joined the investment fund Blisce Climate as a Venture Partner. Her role: “to find and support the climate tech of tomorrow.” She is also the president of Climate House, “a 2,000 m2 house in the heart of Paris to accelerate the transition of the economy by realigning ecological and social issues,” describes a publication on LinkedIn. This will open by the end of the year, and will welcome all types of profiles, ranging from researchers, students to entrepreneurs.
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