3 questions to . . . Laurent Vallet The Managing Director of the Institut pour le financement du cinéma et des industries culturelles (the French Institute for Film Financing and Cultural Industries)

  1. Home > 3 questions to . . . Laurent Vallet The Managing Director of the Institut pour le financement du cinéma et des industries culturelles (the French Institute for Film Financing and Cultural Industries)
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The IFCIC is working closely with the FFPAPF to develop funding tools specifically tailored to fashion designers. We look at a successful partnership that is essential to our young entrepreneurs.

How does the IFCIC operate?
It is a credit institution that was founded in 1983 with the objective of helping businesses in the cultural sector to secure financing, in particular by guaranteeing bank loans. In 2011 we set up two funding tools for young designers: a guarantee fund, endowed by the DEFI, the Comité de Développement et de Promotion de l’Habillement (committee for the development and promotion of the clothing industry), and the Ministry of Industry; and a revolving fund, endowed by Balenciaga, Chanel, Louis Vuitton, and the Ministry of Culture.

How are you working with the Federation?
Young designers who need funding contact the Federation directly. First, the Federation reviews the applications and selects potential candidates. Next, it helps the young entrepreneurs write a sound business plan: a crucial exercise that lends credibility to the project. Then, we work in tandem to ensure that their bank loan applications are successful. Depending on the situation, the designers can either draw on our revolving fund or ask us to guarantee their loan at up to 70% of the total amount requested.

What shared objectives are you looking to develop with the Federation over the next few years?
We share one main objective: to help young entrepreneurs secure funding. Any new initiatives will revolve around this. Communication between the various organisations involved is essential. We also need to work together to develop new training tools. The IFCIC team recently participated in one of the “Ateliers du 5” career development workshops organised by the Federation. These are the kinds of areas we will be exploring more often in the future.