The Entrepreneurship Award
A strong commitment from Mines Paris – PSL
Organized by the Fondation Mines Paris and coordinated by Philippe Mustar, Professor of Innovation & Entrepreneurship, the Mines Paris – PSL – Transvalor Entrepreneurship Award has been celebrating entrepreneurial initiatives that embody the School’s values of boldness, innovation, and impact for ten years. Each year, two awards are presented:
- The Emerging Young Business Award, for a recently created project;
- The Honorary Award, recognizing an accomplished entrepreneurial career.
The 2025 edition highlighted projects committed to ecological, technological, and societal transition. Among the finalists for the Emerging Business Award was Titouan Palomino, a graduate of the Specialized Master’s in Environment and Sustainable Development, Engineering and Environmental Management (EEDD) program at the Institut Supérieur d’Ingénierie et de Gestion de l’Environnement (ISIGE), co-founder of Quasimodo, a young Paris-based company that transforms food waste into a sustainable opportunity.
Quasimodo
Transforming agricultural surpluses into sustainable baskets
Born from the dream of three friends, Samuel, Titouan, and Julien, during the 2020 Hult Prize international competition, Quasimodo took off in 2024 and is now establishing itself as a promising player in the fight against food waste in the Paris region.
The concept is simple and powerful:
- buy downgraded or surplus fruit and vegetables directly from organic producers,
- prepare them in weekly baskets delivered to homes or pick-up points,
- support social inclusion through a partnership with an ESAT (French acronym for “work assistance through employment” organization) that helps prepare the baskets.
From left to right: Samuel Bigeard, Titouan Palomino, and Julien Machuron
With more than 270 customers, 50 partner stores, 30 organic producers in the Paris region, and sustained growth, Quasimodo is part of the dynamic anti-waste market estimated at €520 million in France.
Thanks to his environmental expertise acquired at Mines Paris – PSL and his commitment to sustainable food transition, Titouan plays an essential role in structuring the company’s impact model. Let’s take a look back at his entrepreneurial journey.
- Titouan, what role did your time at Mines Paris-PSL, and in particular the Specialized Master’s in EEDD, play in your desire to embark on an impactful entrepreneurial project?
This training gave me the confidence I needed to launch Quasimodo. I wanted to create a fruit and vegetable basket offering that was different from the others, one that directly addressed the environmental challenges facing the sector. Now that I know how to identify the levers for action and am able to calculate the associated impacts, I feel confident in my decision-making.
I was also fortunate to have the support of my entire class, my classmates, and my MS supervisors. There is an incredible energy there, everyone is very committed and dynamic, it makes you want to get moving to find solutions!
- In your opinion, what role can engineers play in the ecological transition, and how has your entrepreneurial experience enlightened you on this subject?
In my opinion, engineers have a central role to play in supporting the change of model that must happen. They are people who have learned to scientifically measure each action before implementing it. They know the orders of magnitude that allow them to favor some solutions over others. They must act as a safeguard. Engineers are on the side of science, and science is unequivocal about exceeding planetary boundaries and the need to act quickly. But this role also gives them an important responsibility. They can choose whom they serve with their power, and I feel close to those who keep this in mind.
I also think that engineers have a lot to offer us in creating new narratives. I grew up believing that the role of an engineer was often to carry out tasks, but I quickly realized that this was not true. I am surrounded by engineers who, on the contrary, encourage us to think differently, to produce more sustainably, and to invent new models.
With Quasimodo, I understand the importance of weighing decisions and evaluating the ecosystem to find the right levers for action. If you want to stand tall, you have to go through this process of deep questioning. And then it allows you to shape a solid corporate image, because your commitment is in your DNA. You can’t cheat on that.
- How did the Quasimodo adventure come about, from the Hult Prize to the launch of the company in 2024?
We came up with the idea for Quasimodo in 2020 with my friends and co-founders Julien Machuron and Samuel Bigeard. At that time, a report was published by ADEME (the French Environment and Energy Management Agency) proving that nearly a million tons of fruit and vegetables were wasted each year in France directly at the farmers’ premises. We found this absurd and looked for ways to make ourselves useful.
As we worked on the subject, we explored all the problems related to the agricultural sector in France: waste, but also the excessive use of pesticides, overly long and carbon-intensive transport, single-use packaging, unfair remuneration for farmers, and more. It was from this overall observation that the idea for Quasimodo was born, with the aim of offering the fairest possible baskets!
Between 2020 and 2024, the project remained a dream that we didn’t really dare to realize. We had time to finish our studies, gain our first professional experience, and confront the world of work before finally finding the strength to launch our business. So in November 2024, a year ago, we created the social and solidarity economy company Quasimodo. And in just a few months, we received tremendous support from our customers and our farming partners. We were able to turn Quasimodo from a dream into reality without compromising any of our convictions.
- How is Quasimodo’s model innovative in the fight against food waste, and how do you measure its environmental and social impact today?
We don’t know of any other fruit and vegetable basket companies that, like us, tick all the boxes for fair food. With Quasimodo, we have created a 100% organic and ultra-local offering—we only source from the Île-de-France region. Every week, we work with our partners to save as much fruit and vegetables as possible. We operate a short supply chain and are transparent about our margins. And we deliver by cargo bike in returnable bags! The real innovation is this promise of a responsible and fair offering. We try to get as many people as possible on board with this approach.
And in fact, we have an environmental and social impact measurement project planned for early 2026. We are being supported by BPI to develop this innovation. We will offer a tool that can be adapted for each Quasimodo customer. Everyone will be able to see the environmental and social impact behind their basket. The impact on the income of farmers and ESAT workers who help us fill the baskets, the impact of each product on climate change, on biodiversity… We designed it as an educational tool that is understandable to everyone, but very technical in its approach. We can’t wait to unveil it!
- What are your ambitions for Quasimodo over the next three years, particularly in terms of scaling, diversification, and impact?
We want to build a stable and sustainable business without betraying our commitments, so we are doing everything we can to grow at the right pace. Today, we have 270 subscribers and we make around 170 baskets every week. By the end of 2026, we would be very happy to be making 500 baskets per week, reaching 1,000 baskets in 2027. Selling fruit and vegetables generates very little margin, so we need to reach this figure for Quasimodo to survive.
We are also working on projects to diversify our model. For example, we are going to launch a range of processed products (soups, compotes, and spreads) to save even more fruit and vegetables from waste. These will still be organic, local, and short-chain. A crowdfunding campaign is now online to help us roll this out, so please feel free to support us!
And then, as I said, we want to go even further in our impact, so every action we take will be measured and explained publicly.
- What message would you like to convey to students and recent graduates of Mines Paris – PSL who are considering starting a business, particularly in the field of ecological and food transitions?
My first piece of advice is to surround yourself with the right people. I am lucky to be on this adventure with two friends to whom I can say anything, and that is crucial to our dynamic. It’s what allows us to face anything without ever giving up.
I would also say to choose a project you believe in strongly, because that’s what keeps me fighting even when my energy is at its lowest.
And above all, don’t be afraid to fail. We made a lot of mistakes before getting to where we are today, but those mistakes were necessary. We learned a lot from them, and we grew. I recently read an interview with Ugo Bienvenu, the director of the film Arco (a magnificent film!), in which he explains that if he had known all the problems he was going to encounter, he wouldn’t have embarked on the adventure. I recognized myself in his words. Here, I’m talking mainly to very cautious people. It’s too hard to anticipate everything; mentally, it’s exhausting and, in my opinion, counterproductive. You have to dare!
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