“Reducing food waste is a fight that is very dear to me. With a lively and warm gaze, Hassan-Ali Chaudhary has succeeded in reconciling this personal commitment with his job. Holder of a master’s degree in statistical engineering, this brilliant student began his career at Saint-Gobain. He is working on using artificial intelligence to predict defects on glass plates. Then, he joined Accor, in January 2020, where he was responsible for predicting the occupancy rate of hotels.
But last year, he left the hotel group to set up his own company in Levallois-Perret (Hauts-de-Seine), under the name Fullsoon. This start-up, created with the help of its former employer, strives to predict restaurant consumption in order to avoid waste. The business duo received, on June 30, 2022, one of the Villages Awards 2022 for the best large group start-up collaboration.
The click in the middle of Covid
Fullsoon predicts the number of customers, the dishes ordered. Based on the restaurant’s historical data, the tool developed by the company adjusts supplies to avoid losses and anticipates staff management, especially extras. The start-up also takes into account external data that can impact attendance, such as the weather, events, sporting or cultural events, etc.
This software is sold by subscription to restaurateurs, at a price that varies according to the size of the establishment and the number of its customers. “Out of the fifteen restaurants that have tested our platform, our accuracy reaches 94% on the number of customers and 85% on the dishes ordered, assures Hassan-Ali Chaudhary. On average, the restaurateur earns 6 margin points, 800 euros per month on food waste and saves 20 hours on management and organization. »
Hassan-Ali Chaudhary had the click during the first confinement in 2020. Placed in partial unemployment by his employer, he concretized this project which is close to his heart. Having noticed that large quantities of food are thrown away in hotel restaurants, he sketches out a predictive tool. With this tool, he caught the attention of Damien Perrot, director of the Accor group’s entrepreneurial program. This grants it a budget to develop the tool and grants it a six-month deadline.
The 26-year-old data scientist then refines his idea and carries out full-scale tests. The results are conclusive. At the end of this “trial period”, Hassan-Ali Chaudhary is at a crossroads: returning to his position at Accor or creating his own company. Damien Perrot encourages him. “I would not have supported this project if it had not been led by Hassan: he is humble, very hardworking and empathetic. When you support an idea, you support a person and all the momentum that it generates. Hassan-Ali Chaudhary chooses independence. His company was officially created in February 2022.
A family matter
However, the entrepreneur did not start alone: the Accor group took a minority stake of 16%. “If we want this company to create value, it is important that we can offer it to competing companies to attract the maximum number of customers, justifies Damien Perrot. It was much more ambitious to develop it outside the group! Similarly, the Escalator incubator located in Levallois-Perret, created by the advertiser Maurice Lévy, takes an 8% stake in the capital. This structure offers support from 3 to 12 months.
The rest, Hassan-Ali Chaudhary divides it between himself and his two sisters. Misba, a notary, described by Hassan as “caring and very persevering”, becomes the company’s legal referent. Tayeba is an engineer, “she knows how to find the right words to promote communication in her team”, pleads the entrepreneur. She is responsible for the deployment of Fullsoon on an international scale. The family is a cardinal value for Hassan-Ali Chaudhary. Coming from a modest background of Pakistani origin, he grew up in the Paris region surrounded by 5 brothers and sisters to whom he feels very close. “We are very, very close together,” he insists. For homework, we helped each other a lot! Not having had the chance to study, their parents encourage them to go as far as possible.
An entrepreneurial legacy
Entrepreneur himself in textiles, building and real estate, their father will also influence them. He opened his own sewing workshop then created his business in the building industry, after having been a worker. Five of the six Chaudhary children have embarked on business creation. Omar and Nadia have created FlexSpace, a short-term rental platform for business premises. “My father instilled in us this entrepreneurial spirit: not being afraid of failure and facing up when it happens,” says the founder of Fullsoon.
His start-up is only in its infancy. After the development phase, the ambition is to deploy the solution in nearly 200 restaurants by the end of the year. The entrepreneur hopes to complete a second fundraiser of up to 2 million euros.
