Nathalie | Day 16: Demo Day in the 19eme

Today was the culmination of our stay in Paris. We brought a bit of Y Combinator culture to Paris by hosting a Demo Day at our co-working space, Mutinerie. We invited our existing Insiders, our potential Insiders, and members of the Vayable community in Paris. The goal was to showcase how being in Paris has impacted our product and business–and also to get the community involved in shaping the direction we’re headed. We ended the night with a panel discussion and Q&A with Frederic Mazzella (Founder/CEO of BlaBlaCar), Julien Muller (Holidog) and Jamie, moderated by Arthur De Grave of OuiShare.

Whenever I host parties I feel like a nervous kid. Is there enough food? Will anyone show up? After all the snacks and drinks were beautifully set up (merci Michelle et Magalie!), I sat there wondering if we’d have to eat all the Pim’s cookies ourselves. Besides the other invites I had invited about 40 people, but hadn’t asked for RSVPs. Mercifully, Seth cracked open a bottle of red. And mercifully, as soon as 7 o’clock struck, the guests started streaming in.

All in all, it was a night of warm spirits and bodies (40-odd people packed into a ventilation-less cave basement!). But hopefully the photos below look ‘glowing’ instead of sweaty.

Who did you meet?

I saw nearly everyone that had interviewed to be an Insider–as well as many of our existing Insiders. It was a nice bookend to the trip because it really felt familiar. This time we weren’t meeting each other for the first time–we were reconnecting.

What interaction stood out most and why?

I loved Seth’s presentation of the wireframes for potential profiles we’ll use on the site. Everyone there got to vote on which one they’d like to see. It was a fun example of both business and user sides creating something together, which rarely happens. And Seth made it really interactive and fun.

What was the biggest challenge?

Probably the public speaking. I have never loved talking in front of groups of more than 10 or so–even if it’s people I know well and even if I know exactly what I’m talking about. I’m much better at it than I was in the past (I nearly puked once presenting a paper at UC Berkeley), but I still get butterflies. Martin, one of our soon-to-be Insiders, told me to imagine everyone naked. I’m not sure if that helped.

What new ideas did you have?

It sounds cheesy, but I really do like everyone I’ve met here. It’s lovely to be able to go to a new city and feel like I could just keep my bags unpacked and set up shop here. With everyone we’ve met–from the photographers to artists to entrepreneurs–I feel like I have a group of interesting people and friends already made.

What did you discover about yourself?

When I public speak I completely blank out. I have only vague recollections of what I said. I just hope I didn’t say “like” a lot.

What’s something new you learned about the Vayable business/community?

Our community will absolutely ravage a table of snacks. It was completely destroyed!

How’s the team doing?

We were all happy–but the night was really complete when Eskil put on a monkey mask. I don’t know where that came from, but once the monkey mask gets pulled out, you know it’s been a successful event.