On Friday, February 20th, Friends of Bata and Junior Achievement Alumni France hosted the Founders of Tomorrow Toulouse Edition — a full-day, hands-on entrepreneurship experience for 30+ final-year students from Lycée Sainte-Marie de Saint-Sernin.
This was not a competition.
Not a lecture.
Not theory.
It was a live learning lab where students experienced what it really means to build, pitch, and challenge ideas — all in one day.
And what an exceptional day it was.
🔥 A Morning of Pure Inspiration
We opened the event with four powerful founder stories — each one offering a different lens on courage, resilience and what it really takes to build something from zero:
💬 Thomas G. Bata
Director & Founder of Triple B / Friends of Bata
Shared a personal message on courage, purpose and entrepreneurship without borders — reminding students that every big journey begins with a single bold step.
💬 Guillaume Catella
Founder & CEO, Creatella Ventures & LaunchX Entrepreneurship Program
Delivered an energising talk on what it means to just start, take ownership early, and build real entrepreneurial skills long before you have a company.
💬 Thibault Baldivia
Co-founder & CCO, Ascendance
Gave an insider look at building a startup in Toulouse — the setbacks, the pivots, and the mindset required to overcome them.
💬 Eric Mottay
CEO, Amplitude Laser (France)
Showed students how science, curiosity and craftsmanship can turn into a global company — and why entrepreneurship is often born from obsession with a problem.
These four perspectives set the tone for the day:
👉 Entrepreneurship is not a career. It’s a mindset.
🧠 The Afternoon: Students Become Founders
After the inspiration came the action.
Students formed teams, picked problems that mattered to them, and — with only a few hours — prepared a pitch answering key questions:
- Who is your user?
- What problem are you solving?
- What is your solution?
- What makes it different?
- How would you test this fast?
The room was buzzing with energy, whiteboards, napkin sketches, and a lot of “Wait — this might actually work!”
Teams then pitched to the jury in English, showing incredible creativity and clarity for first-time founders.
🏆 Congratulations to the Winning Team: OMNI Media
The project presentations were outstanding, but OMNI Media stood out for:
- strong storytelling
- clear problem framing
- smart early validation ideas
- impressive teamwork
A huge congratulations to them — and to all teams who showed courage and curiosity throughout the day.
🌍 Why Days Like These Matter
Founders of Tomorrow exists for moments like this — when young people:
✨ gain confidence
✨ pitch for the first time
✨ work in teams
✨ learn from real founders
✨ realise entrepreneurship is accessible
This is hands-on learning at its best.
This is Friends of Bata.
🙏 Thank You to Everyone Who Made This Possible
To our speakers — Thomas, Guillaume, Thibault and Eric — thank you for showing students what real entrepreneurship feels like.
To our partners at Junior Achievement Alumni France — thank you for helping bring this experience to Toulouse.
To the teachers and school leadership — thank you for believing in experiential learning.
And to the students — thank you for your energy, your courage, your ideas and your openness.
You are the next generation of founders.
And we’re proud to accompany you on the journey.
