Setting up your company means constantly questioning yourself

Adrien Hugon

MSc in Management, 2017

Riding the wave of modern collaborative applications that meet consumer needs, Cowash is an app that enables you to book a "Cowasher" i.e. a person who will come to your house to collect your laundry, wash and iron it, and bring it back within 48 hours. It is available on iOS and Android, and the app. has been (and continues to be) a huge success.

We met with the company’s creator, Adrien Hugon, who graduated from the MSc in Management in 2017.

Q1. What is Cowash’ current status?

Cowash has some 1000 expert Cowashers available to our Parisian users 24/7. We also have a strong partnership with Unilever and its brand Skip, enabling us to equip our Cowashers and support our growth by rapidly expanding our service to other big cities in France.

Q2. What was the most difficult aspect of setting up your company?

Learning to constantly question myself in order to evolve without losing confidence in the project or getting discouraged. It's quite the balancing act!

Q3. Cowash is very present on social networks, especially Facebook. If social networks disappeared tomorrow (we can always dream ...), could you work without this channel of communication?

If it had to, yes, but I admit it would be boring. Facebook is the best way to reach a large targeted audience daily, to promote and sell our laundry service.

Q4. What is your favourite work-related memory?

There are many, but when I meet a stranger who tells me they use Cowash and that we have changed their life, it makes me truly happy and spurs me on.

Q5. What do you remember about your time at emlyon business school?

The finance classes really fascinated me, discovering Lyon was amazing, but what I will remember most are the people I met and the friends I made during my course at emlyon.

Q6. Would you say you are zen or zealous in your job?

I’m pretty zen, even if it hides a real passion for what I do.

Q7. If you could recruit anyone (CEO, entrepreneur, philosopher, inventor, sportsman etc.) in the world to give new impetus to your company, who would it be?

I admire the tenacity of François Gabart.

* François Gabart is a French navigator and professional skipper. He won the 7th edition of the Vendée Globe and broke the record for the solo round the world trip on his trimaran in late 2017.