“With our catering activity, we give Mamas around the world the power to make a living out of their passion for cooking.”
LOUBNA KSIBI
Cofounder of Meet My Mama
“When I first heard about social entrepreneurship during my studies, I realised that it was possible to combine two aspirations: to have a professional activity and to contribute, if not to changing the world, at least to improving it. Meeting Donia Souad Amamra in 2016 and Youssef Oudahman in 2017 were catalysts. Together, we created Meet My Mama. Our initial intuition is closely linked to our personal histories: we grew up with stay- at-home mothers whose extensive know- how in cooking, often inherited over several generations, was not valued. We wanted to change that, to move Mamas from behind the scenes to centre-stage, making their culinary talent a profession. The aim is to provide support for these women, whether they are immigrants, refugees or undergoing retraining, in a way that breaks with the traditional French non-profit model: in order for them to not just receive aid but to be actors of their own lives. This is the whole meaning of our impact catering activity, the first pillar of our model, which allows them to make a living from their passion for cooking. Over 1,500 companies and institutions, such as VINCI, LVMH and BNP Paribas, have savoured the specialties from around the world prepared by our Mamas. It is very gratifying to see these women, who were anonymous cooks a few months ago, now occupying exceptional spaces, from the Palace of Versailles, the Eiffel Tower, Ireland to Switzerland.
Before showcasing their talents, Mamas are trained in our school, the Mama Academy. As the second pillar of our model, the Academy provides them with the know-how essential to becoming chefs - professional catering techniques, hygiene and food safety rules, etc. - and entrepreneurs, with sessions to learn or improve their French or maths, or to raise their digital awareness. We are also working on their social skills to gain confidence in a male-dominated catering world. As there was no bespoke training content for our Mamas, we went ahead and created it! This school is now open to other beneficiaries, such as people backed by France Travail or the talents of Sodexo.
To become chefs, our Mamas must also overcome material obstacles, such as housing, transportation or childcare. This is where the third pillar of our model, Empower My Mama, our non-profit supporting female entrepreneurship, comes in. Through the comprehensive support provided by our network of partners, which brings together social workers, doctors and lawyers, they have the peace of mind they need to develop their business.
Lastly, when I look at how far we have come, I can see that a fourth pillar completes our model: our clients! Without our active ambassadors who believed in us from the start, nothing would have been possible. Among our leading clients, BNP Paribas occupies a special place, due to our multi-faceted relationship. As our bank, BNP Paribas and its teams, immediately understood the dual economic and social dimension of our project, and they designed a tailor-made banking offering to serve the professional inclusion of our Mamas. Our relationship was further strengthened in November 2024 when BNP Paribas, through its Positive Impact Business Accelerator (PIBA)(1), acquired a stake in our company and participated in our capital increase - the largest in the social impact food sector in France - enabling us to raise €3 million and accelerate our development. Thanks to this extensive support, we are starting a new chapter in our history, with a number of objectives: to create 100 businesses run by women, generate 1,000 jobs, organise 10,000 positive-impact events and become France’s leading impact caterer. With the love and energy of our Mamas, nothing is impossible!”
INTERVIEW CONDUCTED ON 17 MARCH 2025.
MEET MY MAMA
Created in 2017 by Loubna Ksibi, Donia Souad Amamra and Youssef Oudahman, Meet My Mama is based on three activities: the Meet My Mama impact catering activity, the Mama Academy training centre and the Empower My Mama non-profit. Established in Paris and Marseille, Meet My Mama welcomed, listened to and guided more than 2,000 Mamas, of all ages and from all social backgrounds, from Latin America, the Middle East, Europe, Asia and Africa. Meet My Mama has helped many of them become entrepreneurs or find jobs in the restaurant industry.
(1) BNP Paribas’ Positive Impact Business Accelerator (PIBA) has a dual mission: to develop a dedicated framework and offer specific products and services for social and solidarity economy (SSE) players and impact companies; and to coordinate the investment and impact financing strategy at BNP Paribas.