Newsletter - January 2024

As we welcome the new year at La Plage Factory, we hold steadfast to an African aphorism: 'to be without friends is to be truly poor.' In line with this philosophy, we remain committed to cultivating new friendships, forging partnerships, and fostering communities around our shared endeavors. This year is no exception to our dedication to building meaningful connections.

🌟Meet-up highlights

Last week, our community members gathered at Coworking Port Louis for our monthly meetup. The atmosphere was as vibrant as always, with attendees enjoying delightful food and drinks in a calm environment, perfect for networking and catching up after the long holidays.

We were thrilled to have Julien Gonnin as our esteemed guest of the month. With over 15 years of experience in digital services, including strategic communication and production missions, Julien has worked with key local and international players across diverse sectors. He is also the founder of a new tech company called DigitalGo.

Jean-Luc Wilain also enhanced our gathering with a compelling pitch on the "blue economy," aligning with the inspiring movement initiated by Gunter Pauli and in harmony with our Tech for Good mandate. Currently, he is dedicated to a project aimed at local mushroom production to bolster the island's food autonomy.

The meetup ended with an engaging pitching session where startups had the opportunity to present their pitch to the community and receive valuable feedback.

🚀LPF Monthly Highlights

🔹 Programme highlights: We are happy for the quality and diversity of founders, in our new incubation and acceleration cohorts. The programs are running well, and the founders participate diligently.

🔹 Startup Funding: We are happy to announce that our alumni La Déchetèque and our current accelerate Alaprann.mu raised funds for their seed round, with the support of Mo Angels and the much-appreciated involvement from the Eclosia Group.

🔹 New active mentors: We are happy to welcome Milene Hérent , who doubles up as mentor and partner of My Exclusive Books, an app with educational books for kids from 6 to 11.

🚀Ecosystem Updates

• Invest Night: The Second series of the Invest night conference by La French Tech and Mo Angels happened on 5th December.

• National Innovation Challenge: The National Innovation Challenge is an initiative from the MRIC to award the best startup. The application was due on 30th January and La Plage Factory is now part of the jury for the coming selection phase.

• The Angel of the year award: Isabelle de Melo , co-founder of our partner, Mo Angels , won the Angel of the Year award at the Africa Startup Ecosystem Builders Summit & Awards (ASEB) in the beginning of February.

• Job Fair: Career hub will be hosting a job fair between 16-17 February and Noor Sheriff, one of incubatee, will be there.

• NSIS incubators community meeting: The 2nd meeting was postponed to 20 February due to the cyclone.

• Pitch and Network: Entrepreneurs will get a chance to deliver their elevator pitch and network with the Expat.com community on 22 February.

• French Tech Green Tech event: The French Tech organises an event to talk about the challenges and solutions of the french Green Tech startups. It will take place on 5th April from 10 to 3 pm at IFM. Registrations are open until the 1st of March.

• Forum Economic Ocean Indien: On the 17-19 April, the yearly Forum Economic Ocean Indien will be happening in Mayotte, including an "Innovation Spotlight: Pitch des Startups de l'Océan Indien". Qualifying startup will go to Mayotte to pitch on the final day.

🚀Call for Tech for Good Startups Projects

Are you an ambitious entrepreneur gearing to turn your innovative idea into a reality? Or perhaps you are a SME looking for avenues to scale up?

Look no more; we are looking for founders with a growth and innovative mindset to join our next incubation cycle. Follow this link to apply.

🗓️Mark Your Calendars

We extend our heartfelt gratitude to our guest and all the esteemed attendees. If you're eager to be part of our vibrant community, don't miss our next monthly meetup at Coworking Port Louis on March 1st.

🌐Get in Touch

Interested in engaging with La Plage Factory as a startup, partner, sponsor, or mentor? Visit our website at laplage.io or reach out to us at hello@laplage.io.

Let's build a brighter future together for Mauritius, Africa, and the world! 🌍