My name is Vianney de Boisredon, 22 years old, and I am from France. I studied in England and graduated last summer with a bachelor’s degree in politics, philosophy and economics from the University of Exeter (Devon, UK).
I applied for the EBoP Fellowship because…
Studying politics, philosophy and economics has given me a global perspective to the challenges that society is facing today. Eager to apply my theoretical knowledge, I undertook a summer internship in a social business supported by Danone Communities in Dakar, Senegal, Our mission was to help local herders living in remote villages make a better living by selling and delivering the dairy products produced by their herds to urban consumers in Dakar. Therefore, I wrote my final year dissertation on the context in which social enterprise can respond to the needs of underserved populations in the developing world.
I quickly realized that solving society’s biggest problems is what motivates me at my core. After my three years of university, my dream was to get involved in a meaningful project in Southeast Asia. The six-month fellowship offered by Essilor Base-of-Pyramid Innovation Lab was the perfect opportunity to reconcile my desire to both pioneer an impactful project in a low-income market and challenge myself in an unfamiliar environment.
During these six months, I am…
During this fellowship, I am based in Hanoi, Vietnam, working in the field to develop an inclusive and sustainable business model in the rural areas of Vietnam. My project is on the assessment of the Vietnamese optical market with the ambition to launch a new inclusive business model at the end of the six months. More specifically, I am conducting consumer behavior surveys, focus groups, and field studies on existing optical shop infrastructures in the three provinces of Vietnam.
I am very proud because despite endless challenges, my interns and I recently completed the market research. I am now in discussion with the management to explore gaps and opportunities for primary vision care in Vietnam and other Southeast Asian countries.
With this fellowship, I want to….
By the end of the six months, my final objective is very clear: to develop a base-of-pyramid entry into the Vietnamese optical market through inclusive business. On a personal note, I wish to develop a strong mindset for innovation and entrepreneurship by escaping my comfort zone and constantly taking initiatives.
After the fellowship, I will be…
After the fellowship, I hope to pursue my career with a two-year master’s degree in management to develop my hard skills. I felt this is what I was lacking to be more efficient in my daily business operations in Vietnam.
Having said that, after my studies, I would love to keep contributing to Essilor’s mission of eliminating poor vision of 2.5 billion people by 2050. This is exactly the kind of program that deeply motivates me in the long-term.
So something interesting about me…
I was born in France but left for Asia two weeks after being born. I grew up in Asia until I was seven years old: my family lived in Tokyo for two years and in Hong Kong for four years. So living in Vietnam kind of feels like going home! 😉 I am fascinated with computer programing: in September last year, I took part in a nine-week coding bootcamp in Barcelona to learn how to build a web app from scratch. In my free time, I love coding to challenge myself and learn new skills.
GET TO KNOW OUR OTHER EBOP FELLOWS HERE!