Léa ARRAULT

Présent & Sens: A stronger commitment thanks to France Active

Making a commitment takes courage! For entrepreneurs who place impact at the heart of their projects, the challenge is to balance ambition with resilience: building a sustainable business model while amplifying their social and environmental impact. This requires much more than just funding. Networking, as well as collective and individual support, are all essential tools for transforming a commitment into lasting success. 

This is the path taken by Léa Arrault, founder of Présent & Sens, which is reinventing corporate gifts through local, responsible, and inclusive production, thanks to the support of France Active Centre-Val de Loire. A conversation between Léa Arrault, Tanguy Lanceleve, financial advisor, and Tiphaine Bressac, transition support specialist, at the regional France Active association. 

Could you summarize Présent & Sens’s journey with France Active?

Tanguy : In 2021, Présent & Sens benefited from our bank loan guarantee dedicated to women entrepreneurs, as recommended by the Caisse d’Épargne, one of our partners most committed to supporting women’s entrepreneurship.

Eager to push her project to the next level and strengthen her commitment, Léa then joined the first cohort of the Activateur des Transitions. This support program, spanning several months, enabled her to develop a five-year action plan to structure her business’s growth.

As part of this process, she amended her statutes to fully align her business with the social and solidarity economy. In 2023, she was able to secure a France Active participatory loan, which gave her the means to scale up her business.

What is the “Activateur des Transitions”?

Tiphaine : It’s an acceleration program for ecological and inclusive transitions that alternates between group work sessions and individual coaching.

Set up as part of the Centre-Val de Loire Region’s Accel’Transitions program and led by France Active Centre-Val de Loire, it supports 10 to 15 organizations over an 18-month period.

Can you describe Présent et Sens in a few words?

Léa : I help companies rethink their purchasing decisions regarding gifts and promotional items by putting people and nature back at the heart of their choices. I guide them in making an impact on their clients and teams through responsible and socially conscious gifts, as well as other awareness-raising initiatives.

How has France Active supported Présent & Sens on its journey toward social responsibility?

Tiphaine : Léa truly drew on the program’s educational approach to develop her business structure and strengthen her commitment. Thanks to her journey, she was able to deepen her roots in the local community, forge local partnerships, and amplify her environmental and social impact—notably by working with socially responsible suppliers and collaborating with ESATs (Établissements et Services d’Accompagnement par le Travail) to package her large orders. She has also framed her project within a framework of job creation and shared governance.

Léa : France Active’s support was crucial in aligning my business model with my values. First, connecting with other entrepreneurs in my region—particularly through the Faire Mouvement 37 community and the Activateur des Transitions—reassured me: I realized I wasn’t alone in wanting to make a difference and that there was a potential market!

I met many entrepreneurs and leaders in the social and solidarity economy sector, which allowed us to exchange perspectives and draw inspiration from best practices in both worlds. All these exchanges helped me accelerate my scaling efforts while strengthening a meaningful project.

In practical terms, what has France Active’s support changed?

Léa : The funding allowed me to launch a new website, hire staff, and join an incubator for innovative companies in Tours.

Taking this collective perspective into account made me realize that I couldn’t grow my business sustainably by relying solely on a buy-and-resell model, particularly in the corporate gift market, where volume and price remain the dominant factors.

I have therefore expanded my services: I now offer support to businesses and local governments by raising their employees’ awareness of more responsible consumption patterns. I’ve been trained to facilitate “Fresques” and quizzes on the circular economy, in order to take this momentum of transition, commitment, and awareness even further.