#5 Aurélie - Happiness Therapist

Rive Droite is a brand of mixed bags and accessories designed for today's urban tribes, made from recycled and upcycled materials by designers in precarious situations (our "Dudes", a contraction of Durable + Desirable) that we help them become independent and create their micro-enterprise.

Yasmine, Sofia and I launched Rive Droite initially to be in line with our personal values: to work and want to have, on our scale, a positive impact on the world in which we live. With Rive Droite we really want to show that we can combine business and ethics, eco-design and desirability. And help make sustainability the new standard in fashion.

The major key milestones achieved by Rive Droite:

• Summer 2016: Rive Droite at its first Wholesale resellers
• September 2016: opening of our e-shop
• 2017: Implementation of our own integrated and participatory production model with our “Dudes”
• 2018: opening of major Wholesale accounts
• September 2019: opening of our Parisian showroom

When the lockdown was announced, we immediately implemented teleworking and maintained the activity of our e-shop with all the necessary barrier measures. Our priority was to be able to pay our employees and our Dudes and above all to prepare for the future! Then we organized remote teamwork; manage operational emergencies and try to prepare for the aftermath.

I would be incapable of predicting the future but I hope that this crisis will allow a profound refocusing on the essential (health budget to be reviewed for example), a paradigm shift: from singularity to solidarity, a return to local (regional VS global): relocation of industry, support for local and ethical businesses, and that this will put ecology back at the center of everything who knows! I don't know if it's wishful thinking, but I want to be optimistic by telling myself that such a crisis will inevitably bring renewal.

My current mantra would be “Everything is going to be ok at the end, if it's not ok, it's not the end.” An optimistic mantra that reassures me and promotes endurance!

I don't necessarily have any advice to give for other entrepreneurs, because this period is still very stressful when we are independent entrepreneurs and we are all trying to manage as best we can based on our business model.

For Rive Droite, this crisis is an opportunity to accelerate projects that we had in mind for 2021, for example, but which we ultimately think are priorities. Analyze the flaws in our model and try to set up another organization. This crisis in any case reassures us that our ethical production and brand model is the right one!

All the Mister k mantras could work for us but Together Stronger particularly resonates with me and fits well with our philosophy. I am very touched by the solidarity initiatives that are teeming on the networks to help caregivers for example, but not only that. And solidarity between entrepreneurs: we check in on each other, we do live shows together, we reassure each other, in short we really believe in this mantra which does us good.

My first instinct when leaving confinement will be to jump on a train to go hug my family; have a drink on the terrace with my friends and associates; take my son to the seaside; return to my beloved restaurants on the Right Bank. Ahhh I have lots of desires!!!

To find out more about the world of Rive Droite, click here .

Feather: Aurélie