Two first-year students in the Grande Ecole Engineering Programme in “Les Entrep’ Pays de la Loire,” a training and exploration program focused on entrepreneurship.
The "Les Entrep'" program offers a hands-on immersion into the world of entrepreneurship. Open to all young people under the age of 30, it favors a practical approach, emphasizing multi-skilled teamwork and benefiting from the support of entrepreneurs and experts in the field.
At the end of this competition, sixty promising projects were supported and awarded prizes at a ceremony held at the Catholic University of the West. The success of these young entrepreneurs stems from the complementary nature of their team members, who are made up of participants from different schools who did not know each other beforehand.
Regional Trophy and Favorite Award
Antoine Chédor, a student at Arts et Métiers, was joined by a student in the Bachelor’s program in Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, a student in International Business, Economics, and Ethics, and a student specializing in human resources.
As for Paul Konneradt, also a student at Arts et Métiers, his team included a student in human resources, one in business management and ethics, a finance specialist, a student in Master of Science , Business, and Society program, and Paul, an engineering student in the Grande Ecole Engineering Programme Arts et Métiers Angers campus.
Antoine Chédor and his team won the regional trophy for the 2024 edition. Their project, ‘Wat’Save’, offers an innovative system that integrates directly into showers to eliminate the initial waste of cold water. Designed to be versatile and autonomous, it offers comfort and practicality, meeting the expectations of environmentally conscious users.
Thanks to this victory, they won €1,000 for their project.
Paul Konneradt's team also made a lasting impression with their 'Eaurigine' project. Nominated for the Prix Coup de Cœur, they came up with an innovative solution that proposes the use of a modernized deposit system. With this solution, customers consume local spring water without generating plastic waste and significantly reduce their CO2 emissions.
Following its victory, Antoine's team will defend its project in a pitch battle on June 11 at Terra Botanica (49) as part of the "4S" competition launched by Crédit Mutuel de l'Anjou.
The four winning teams will each receive €4,000 to develop their project, as well as a place at the innovation fair in Lyon in January 2025.
An inspiring entrepreneurial adventure for the future
For Paul, this experience was an opportunity for learning and practical training: "First you experiment, then you make mistakes, then you start again and try something different. That's how you really learn." This initiative sparked his desire to pursue entrepreneurship, and even to enroll in the Entrepreneurship and Technological Innovation Program, a course designed to support engineering students in carrying out technological innovation projects in companies or in creating/taking over a business. This program offers specific teaching and individualized support for project leaders within a regional incubator.
As for Antoine, the adventure he shared with his teammates, crowned with victory in the program, was extremely rewarding: " This experience opened my mind; it was the people I met that determined my participation in this event. This adventure offers many opportunities, whether in terms of encounters, relationships, or professional opportunities. "
Participating in this experience revealed to Antoine his desire to pursue entrepreneurship, whether by continuing the Wat'save project or by joining the PEIT in collaboration with Paul.
Antoine would like to send a message to first-year students: " Don't hesitate to embark on this totally unique experience. You can't imagine all the opportunities that are out there, in every respect, and whatever happens, you'll never waste your time—you're bound to learn something. "
