Shubham Lakra

EDHEC Business School

Hometown: India/ France

Fun Fact About Yourself:  I had the option of choosing the french language in my school but I was never interested, thinking I would never go to France, but destiny was at play.

Undergraduate School and Major / Degree programme: Bachelors in Business economics from Delhi University and MIM grande école with Msc in entrepreneurship from Edhec

Describe your biggest accomplishment in your life so far:  The smartest decision was to start a business early in life at the age of 24, leading to the biggest accomplishment of running a profit-making business right from day 1.

Was Entrepreneurship always your career goal? Yes, it has been at the forefront of my ambitions and working for someone else was never on the cards.

What led you to pursue a Masters at this point in your personal development? My curiosity for an international experience and desire to develop a broad network in a truly global business school led me to pursue Masters in France.

How did you decide if a Masters was worth the investment? It is a basic risk analysis like other aspects of life. The risk is with time, money, and effort . I decided to pursue this Masters after careful délibération and weighing my options at that stage of my life.

What was the key factor that led you to choose this Masters at Edhec and why was it so important to you? The international ambience, the strong network and the idea of limitless thinking in the entrepreneurial set up at Edhec were really the key factors to help me make this decision.

What quality best describes your classmates? My classmates were/are free thinkers and strong-willed people with good at heart quality.

Tell me about your venture: Our company ‘Bredlak’ is in the recycling sector. We are trying to make a difference in this green sector by bringing in more transparency and professionalism when dealing with post-industrial and post-consumer scraps. We have a team of 6 employees with offices in France and Spain.

How has your business school experience helped you in creating and launching your business?  Edhec played a pivotal role and almost central to the formation of my company. Right from receiving invaluable financial and strategic advice from Msc entrepreneurship dean to providing a working space in the initial 6 months of incubation at the Edhec incubator, Edhec has always been supportive.

What is the biggest/most important lesson you have learned during your studies? The value of a network is unparalleled.

What are the next steps for you / your entrepreneurial venture? We are in the fourth year of our business activity and growing rapidly, our biggest challenge today is to manage our growth. We are in the process of turning this business into a company and to double our turnover by the end of 2021 while also increasing our profits in double digits percentage.

Where do you see yourself in five years? In the next five years, I see myself being part of an internationally recognized company in the recycling sector with presence in at least two continents. Thus creating more job opportunities. This is also a personal belief that we can transform society by creating more opportunities of work for others.

DON’T MISS: MEET THE MIM ENTREPRENEURS OF 2020