Loic Le Meur (on left in picture, along with me, Tariq Krim and Rodrigo Sepulveda), the well known French entrepreneur and blogger, is moving from Paris to silicon valley this summer to start a new video content company.
Le Meur founded uBlog (merged with Six Apart) and organizes of the annual Le Web conference. In an email, he told me it’s the perfect place for him and his family right now: silicon valley is the center of Internet innovation, and he says his children will learn to speak better English by living here. He also says he likes the acceptance of failure in silicon valley. “If you succeed it’s great, if you fail try again that’s ok, you learned. In Europe it’s usually if you succeed hide and if you fail you suck, so don’t try again,” he says.
With regard to his startup, he isn’t saying much yet. He does point out that its easier to gather a global team when the headquarters speaks English rather than French. He says that the path to success will be quicker from silicon valley. He also says:
I am currently in the process to create a fifth startup, based in the US and currently finalizing the initial funding. Can’t say much at this stage but it will be in the video content space, so hot and competitive these days because most remains to be done. I have uploaded to date about 450 podcasts, so I feel something very different than what we see today is ahead of us. What I can say is that I will crowdsource the company itself, grow it as I learnt in always beta mode and grow it with the feedback of my community. I have already gathered my advisory board, a group on facebook open to everyone
He’s also quick to point out that there are a lot of successful European startups. This is just the right move for him and his family, he says.
Whatever his startup, we’ll be covering it here on TechCrunch when it launches. Loic says to look for an early beta some time this Fall.
I am not sure at the time of Internet we have to move to start a new company up.
Are you looking for talent, investment, better infrastructure? Look around and tell me if can’t do this from home and move from time to time. Is it going to be different in California?
Mario Ruiz
http://www.oursheet.com
With France the tax is so high that launching a company that will probably not make money for 1 year is almost an impossibility. France needs to wake up and lower the tax for startups else they will see more of the same. The banks too lack the entrepreneurial spirit.
Great, another European succes story moves to the Valley…
I’ve been writing an article about the origins of the European startup sphere as Loic describes. Nail on the head.
The only way to change the attitude that Loic complains about is to stay here (Europe) and set an example. If I fail at something I do it loud and clear. When I succeed I don’t hide but tell people how I did it and what if brought me.
From a personal point of view I completely understand that Le Meur is leaving but for European entrepreneurs it isn’t a good example.
Silicon Valley VS the rest of the world… Some times here in Europe we have to fight twice as hard to succeed. Shameless self promotion: “tech povera” stories on my blog.
I love the post he has on his site with all of the questions. He’s definitely tried to cover every angle, and made a real attempt to give quite a lot of background and reasoning to his decision.
I hope he succeeds with his business, otherwise he will find it very hard to stay (if he’s using E-2 or EB-5 class visas, as I’d imagine – although perhaps he’d qualify for an O?) because most of the relevant visas are dependent on business success within a certain period..
I wish them much success
Mike
Welcome to the valley, Loic! Just don’t stay in Half Moon Bay like Scoble did. Weather at the coast sucks 80% of the time
Well I am quite interested in seeing what the company will turn out to be, but I guess the question of “moving to the valley” is an interesting one as well. I think Le Meur hits the nail on the head when he says the path to success will be “easier”. I don’t believe that it would be impossible to launch the venture from France, but just the cost benefit of such a move did not pan out.
I have this strong feeling that we are closing in on one of those seasonal sea changes in the way that entrepreneurship operates. I think The Valley will continue to attract the huge players in entrepreneurship (as it should). Easier money, strong built in infrastructure, and lower barriers to entry are tough to argue with. However, the smaller, more agile and probably riskier venture minded folks might start looking outside of the valley at other factors (cost of living, required salary etc…).
In the next few years, I expect a few more interesting hot beds of technology might start springing up in unexpected places.
Regardless, this venture looks exciting (new media is great), I can’t wait to see what turns up.
Good luck to Loic, he’s a good guy with a lot of interesting ideas.
To be successful in a startup, you’ve got to find the right team, market and product regardless of where you set up the company. If these conditions are more favourable in the US, then that’s where you should go, simple. Nationalistic sentiments and patriotic rigour have no place in creating a profitable business.
Also, two things work in the US advantage: people’s attitude and access to VC cash.
Good luck Loic, it makes sense Silicon Valley loves European talent
thanks all for your welcome comments !
Boris: “The only way to change the attitude that Loic complains about is to stay here (Europe) and set an example.” I have worked hard for more than ten years to also help other entrepreneurs here and share in the press and also to the President himself during the campaign on what should be done, and I will continue from there, especially with my french blog… I also directly invested as a business angel in about 15 companies, most of them european.
Bonne chance, Loic! Enjoy the valley!
Bonne chance à toi Loïc! La Californie c’est chouette, y’a des fast-food mexicains partout (chose qui manque à Paris!) et une fiscalité plus intéressante!
John
http://www.gigatribe.com
Hi,
Can we make sure Loic Le meur doesn’t forget Thomas Clement in his luggage ?
Thanks a lot.
we are loosing our best man
Anyway i’m looking forward to this new venture. I hope the crowdsourcing will work well.
Good Luck Loic !
I have this strong feeling that we are closing in on one of those seasonal sea changes in the way that entrepreneurship operates. I think The Valley will continue to attract the huge players in entrepreneurship (as it should). Easier money, strong built in infrastructure, and lower barriers to entry are tough to argue with. However, the smaller, more agile and probably riskier venture minded folks might start looking outside of the valley at other factors (cost of living, required salary etc…).
I agree, but I think most of those places will be limited to either the US or places that have good connectivity to the US (either in terms of technology, politics or language – such as the UK, Australia, Scandinavia). The current deal is.. the US has a gigantic market that mostly speaks a single language, and it’s the height of craziness for a cash-strapped startup to focus on a minor European market unless the US market is overcrowded and the local market is undersupplied.
I’m based in the UK, but 90% (or more) of my total work and my businesses’ customers are US-based, even though I rarely have to travel there. It makes no sense for me to concentrate on the UK, which has 6 times less people, 5 times smaller economy, and a more backwards attitude to the net. I think more Europeans are /starting/ to realize this, but it’s a slow process.
After all, why focus on two-bit countries all with different languages when you can launch something new more cheaply into the world’s biggest economy?
to the first commenters: actually, loic stayed and tried in france for the past 10 years, and it’s not as if he didnt try tech entrepreneurship. i think it’s the perfect time for him to move and see what’s up in the valley. in due time, it will be a lesson for all french.
@heri >> “it will be a lesson for all french”
Don’t think french needs a lesson from anybody.
Loic made is choice, good for him.
Yes France has a long way to go in getting better for all entrepreneur but leaving the boat will not help neither.
I do respect is choice, but french have good hope now that tax will be lowered and mentality about loosing or winning will change soon.
Bonne chance Loic a toi et toute ta famille !
Ouf enfin il part !! on en pouvait plus de lui et son ego surdimensionné… MÔsieur se veut le maître des blogs… mais n’a pas pour autant créé le concept…
Dis Loic, ça valait la peine de donner des consignes de vote pour partir de France ?
Finally he moves from France ! We can’t bear more time him and its over-dimensioned ego…
It would be not fair play to give vote consign knowing you will move from france…
Many entrepreneur doesn’t have to follow him to have success…
His success is largely due to the simple fact to be present in 94/96 before the “bulle internet” when it was simple to do something on the net… now it’s different for us, student, which have to search harder the way of success on the net.
@ Loic, I would love to hear what you learned. I too have learned a lot on video, and am very interested in other people’s ideas on what might be ahead. I don’t want to start a content platform (building and driving my site StyleDiary was exhausting enough!) but I’ve been interested in getting involved in internet video for many years, now maybe as a content producer since I’m already writing and pitching a lot of shows to pretty large tv networks now and have such a big following from my fashion site.
If you’ve got a good look around the corner in video, I would love to hear what you have to say!!
New one:
Yet another Video Site
YAVS
– for sure / move that far to put in your 2 cents / -RB
@Lois: It isn’t that you haven’t done enough (my compliments!) just that I hope you will do even more.
I’m sure the valley is a great place to start a company I just would have liked it more if you would have done it in Paris, or Europe in general. People like you and Saul Klein are working hard to prove that Europe is just as great a place to start a company as the Valley. It helps if more companies would be founded here. Netvibes did it, Skype did it and you did it too.
@Boris: Loic did it 4 times in Europe, so he has done his fair share of the effort. And I am sure that he will be back often enough to spend time with European entrepreneurs and help “bridge the gap”.
This is good news. I will be willing to sell http://www.veetube.com if he is intrested.
What does this mean for Les Web? Hope its still on.
LeWeb3 is still on and on Dec11th and 12th again, in Paris. We had two Presidents speaking there last year by the way, Sarkozy and now Shimon Peres, it will be difficult for us to do better on that point this year
I hope he will do good.
He should make ways to make it different so his venture would stand out.
Is it me or does Loic looks like a young Sean Connery, but with a little less hair!
@olivier
“I do respect is choice, but french have good hope now that tax will be lowered and mentality about loosing or winning will change soon.”
You’re totally dreaming. 5 or 10 years is what it would take to make things change in France. That’s not what I call “soon”.
I just left France to go in Montreal because I was really fed up. I tried (and friends as well) to make business there. It’s just pain.
Loic Le Meur. Les Bleu! Interesting with all the talk about online video and especially video search. Any interesting plans for the UI of the project??
Does anyone know what visa is he on?
I wish a good success to Loic in the US. He’s better at creating startups than lobbying for recently elected sarkozy, as he was doing just here in paris.
I hope that he will understand now, that politics don’t mix well with business
I hope also he will learn that France is not as loosy as he proclamed, once he will discover he has no soul fit with any americans (the sad true of all french in the US…)
Welcome!
@Hugo there are 40,000 french in the bay area, i’m sure he will find his soul…
Fun. This guy told us 6 month ago ” Let’s vote or Sarkozy. Ths guy understand startuppers”. LeMeur even did a coming out for Sarko. And now that Sarkozy is president, LeMeur is leaving for others skies… What a persistence ! So where’s the bug ?
a) He finaly thinks he made a mistake
b) He’s frustated not being invited to participate to the NicoSarko gov (so he quits France…)
c) He was considered as a perfect communication tool…
Guess he made enought money to extract himsef from France not to worry with what goin on with Sarkozy now.
sic.
…someone explain to me why moving from France to the U.S. is any different than moving from say China, India, Australia and countless other places around the globe?
What’s the big deal. The world is smaller, it’s easier to move around. Is ther something special about France? ..been there countless times and always glad to be back in the Bay Area.
Well Nemrut. You did not execute a startup successfully and you were not a friend of TechCrunch. Believe me these two combinations are too good.
i’ll tell you why geographic location can be important.
1. the lifestyle which supports your ability to work is heavily affected by where you are…
2. connections with people – peers, potential hires, business relationships…
i write about web startups and entrepreneurs in malaysia (my home) and work with a tight team of entrepreneurs and marketers from over 10 countries… we have mixed feelings having chosen malaysia over the valley… but so far so good.
Go for it Loic. (I am the right person to ask?
)
While packing, enjoy Bill Maher’s show here http://theemini...ench.html#links
Simply hilarious.
Funny how you selfproclamed heroes of the web always stick together like flies on a pile of …
Another videocontent site, yay for wasting space on the net…
Ce qui est enmerdant c’est que ça va conforter l’idée qu’il n’y a de réussite possible qu’aux USA (ce qui est sans doute vrai mais ça fait mal à l’orgueil national).
Loïc, ne nous laisse pas avec nos gauchistes locaux…
Sarkozy ne suffira pas.
Tu te prend pour qui charlo ?
L’exemple de reussite française comme celle de xavier niel est enseignée aux US alors tu peux revoir ton idée de réussite à l’étranger;
Le pb ici c’est que loic cherche comme toujours à faire de l’argent, là où il y a déjà du monde. et effectivement pour les copieurs il y a plus de place aux us je pense mais quand tu créés qq chose, comme ça a été dit plus haut… qq soit l’endroit tu peux être… le monde est petit et ça ne change absolument rien.
sarko buzz will be quickly down soon ! but it’s too late. sarkozy is a lier… and loic is behind him… support him and his lies. shame on you.
To Amy
i know that a lot of frenchmen work in the US because of the dynamism of the people/economy/structural advantages.
What i’ve been constantly said by those frenchmen is that they have problems to socialize with americans, because they don’t fit on a personal level, other than work .
They’re a saying:
Two americans will build a personal relationship if it enables them to work together
Two frenchmen will work together if they can have a personal relationship together
You can read “French & Americans – The Other Shore”
http://www.pbau...re/index_en.php
if you’re interested in the question
That was a real shock for me, to realize how different we were
Good Luck for your new job Loic !
Nicolas
http://www.tendancemedia.com