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Elsa Hermal

Regeneration Coach 🌍 Supporting leaders on their journey for more impact, awareness & purpose 🌱 Burnout fighter 🤸🏼‍♀️ Holistic Retreats & Workshops for teams 🙌 epicery cofounder (exited) 🧠 Forbes 30under30

Elsa Hermal is a prominent angel investor and co-founder of Epicery, a Paris-based e-commerce platform that connects consumers with local gourmet food merchants. Founded in 2016, Epicery aims to preserve artisan food culture by providing an online marketplace for small producers, enabling them to reach a broader audience while maintaining their traditional practices.34 Hermal's entrepreneurial journey has been marked by her commitment to impact investing, focusing on sustainable and socially responsible ventures.

Career Highlights

  • Co-founder of Epicery: Under her leadership, Epicery has successfully connected thousands of consumers with local artisans, promoting the sale of gourmet products and enhancing the visibility of small businesses in the competitive e-commerce landscape.3
  • Angel Investor: Elsa is actively involved in angel investing with a portfolio that emphasizes impact over profit. She has invested in various sectors, including climate tech and consumer goods, and is known for her philosophy that investments should not only yield financial returns but also contribute positively to society.14
  • Recognition: Hermal was named in Forbes' 30 Under 30 list for Europe in the Retail & E-commerce category in 2018, highlighting her influence and success in the industry.5

Investment Philosophy

Elsa Hermal advocates for an investment approach that prioritizes impact alongside financial returns. She believes that investors have a responsibility to support businesses that contribute positively to society. This perspective shapes her investment strategy, focusing on companies that address social challenges and promote economic resilience.12

Educational Background

Elsa holds a Master of Science from Iéseg School of Management, which has equipped her with the skills necessary for navigating both entrepreneurial ventures and investment landscapes.5

Through her work at Epicery and as an angel investor, Elsa Hermal continues to influence the startup ecosystem in France and beyond, championing sustainable business practices and supporting innovative entrepreneurs.

Highlights

Jul 10 · linkedin

I was selected among top European Business Angels by Roundtable 👸 🔥 💸 So very grateful & happy to be supporting impact entrepreneurs & growing together towards a better future. 👉 What does it mean to be a "Top" Business Angel, really ? 🤯 💥 This question raised for me seing this list, and I would love to hear some thoughts & challenges towards how we "rate" people in our industry and how we can do better to promote healthy & supportive role models.

I have immense gratitude towards my journey as an impact entrepreneur & investor, and people I have been lucky to co-invest with & invest in. I also acknowledge my privilege being able to do this work and the responsibility that goes with it.

Among some of the most inspiring people in our ecosystem, I also see on this list some very toxic people who are properly dangerous for our community & our future. And I am not talking of people who have been tough and made minor mistakes along the way - I'd be the first one to plaid guilty... I am talking about people who are in position of extreme power & wealth, and as they interact with the world, society and our entrepreneur, use this position of power to promote hate, extreme far-right extremist speech, toxic competitiveness, abuse of ressources & people, transphobia and facism and so on.

Seing that, leaves me with some bitterness. But of course, as a fundamentally hopeful rebel & change maker, it also fires up my desire for hands-on activism.

I'd love to hear from anyone who relates to that and any media who's willing to take a stand on due diligence of angel investors & entrepreneurs, and how to challenge the status quo and bring awareness & health in our existing power dynamics. Charlie Perreau Maddyness Julien Fissette Angelsquare Alexandre Korenfeld Les Echos Louis Carle Jeremy Blackwell

Thanks for the mention Roundtable and hope you like the challenging perspective. For anyone who's read that far, on Roundtable you can see my portfolio of kick-ass impact companies and discover about investment thesis which is anything I find personally impactful among climate, mental health, wellness, rupture innovation for the world. 🌏 🌱 🕊

And if you wanna get the good people around you here is my personal recommendation 💕 : Some of the best investors ON this list: Tatiana Jama Roxanne Varza Lorraine Strauss Antoine Sakho Anh-Tho Chuong Julia Bijaoui Vanessa Daurian Proust Chantal Baudron Valentine Baudouin Marie Outtier Some of the best investors NOT on this list: Fariha Shah Claire BRETTON Maud P. Antoine Chamussy Alexis Angot Rodolphe Landemaine Rob Elkin Matthieu Tourne Marc-David Choukroun Philip Stehlik Caroline Lair Céline Orjubin Marie Dewavrin Solenne Bocquillon- Le Goaziou Victoire Mulliez Victoire Mine (Goebel) Fabienne Neveux Marie-Anne Teissier

Wanna know the worst ones ? Hit me up, list coming soon 😜 🏹

Mar 10 · linkedin

👉 I was lucky to be invited by EUVC to talk about my path and vision of angel investing with the amazing Andreas Munk Holm & Anthony Danon.

Stats say women make 20% of Business Angels... 😨 As light fades out on “Women Day”, I want to acknowledge my privilege being one of the very few women investors out there. 👸

🙌  I take this immense chance as a responsibility, to display & encourage new role models, behaviors, patterns and frameworks, and support building a better world for the people and planet.

Even though the episode was delayed, it now feels like an absolute perfect synchronicity ✨ 😍

I remember waking up that morning with the strongest sense of belonging & purpose, in my mission to promote diversity and regeneration in the VC & tech world 💪 Beyond the notion of gender, I want to encourage more diversity and sustainability, and a shift of paradigm in entrepreneurship, investment, tech & our society. It’s vital for our planet & society we leave the old patriarchal-consumerist approach, and start building projects & evaluate opportunities beyond simple financial returns.

👉 "As an investor, I believe it is actually a very strategic choice financially, to be focusing on impact." Snippets from what you'll find in our convo with Andreas & Anthony Cocoa 🍫 :

How to evaluate startups with a triple bottom line approach : People & Planet & Profit 🌍 💶 👫 If we want to change the world, we cannot keep using old & outdated work methods & traditional performance indicators 💸🌱

Why I believe project that don’t integrate impact at the core of their strategy will DIE ☣

My first 14 investments as a BA, some vision & secret sauce, notably how I surround myself to invest as a team, with like-minded & brilliant BA, or expert funds like Satgana & Imagination Machine

Why the best way to avoid startup failure is to take immense CARE of our founders’ mental & physical health ☀ 🧖‍♂️ The culture of Founders hustling & burning on the altar of their projects is OVER [+ bonus anecdote on why I said NO to a founder perpetuating this].

🧘‍♀️ Burn Out Pandemic needs to stop. Who hasn’t had enough of this exhausting nonsense ? Let’s build a culture of care & vulnerability, leading our lives, projects and investments from the heart.

💓 Special Thx to my inspiring BA friends, without whom I couldn't have undertook this journey .... Lorraine Strauss Claire BRETTON Marie Outtier Roxanne Varza Vanessa Daurian Proust Alexis Angot Victoire Mine (Goebel) Victoire Mulliez Lara Rouyres Tatiana Jama Caroline Lair Marie Dewavrin Julia Bijaoui Fabienne Neveux Marie-Anne Teissier Céline Rémy Maud P. Agathe Wautier Anh-Tho Chuong Yonca Braeckman Jeremy Charoy Antoine Le Conte Climate Club 50 Partners Philip Stehlik

#businessangel #vc #impactinvesting #climatetech

Related Questions

What inspired Elsa Hermal to transition from being an entrepreneur to an angel investor?
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Elsa Hermal
Elsa Hermal, photo 1
Elsa Hermal, photo 2
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Location

Lisbon, Lisbon, Portugal