All my ambitions for 2023 - 2022 review (part 4)

Our contents in 2023

And here is the last elephant in the room: our content in 2023. In the first part of this review , I outlined my desire to have content that is more consistent with our brand, which prompted a number of comments.

It all started with a survey…

Here too, things have changed quite a bit in the last two months ! And… it’s because of you! Indeed, at the end of December, we launched a big survey, with a simple question: what kind of content do you want to see from us? More than a thousand of you responded and Jérôme read each of your answers, in full (I read a good part of them too). He then did a huge amount of work of sorting, classification, and synthesis, of which you can have a small preview here .

Basically, you want BonneGueule content focused on:

• of the council
• of inspiration
• of discovery

This gives an extremely clear direction for our content in 2023, where our upcoming content must tick these three boxes.

But this required reviewing the organization of our editorial team .

Evolving roles

Originally, Jordan was supposed to be in charge of all the editorial side, but he missed creating content.

And in the poll, a huge number of you called for its return.

That's good, because he wants to get back in front of the camera. So Nawal will be the one to lead the editorial for us so that Jordan can have time to make videos for you again. So yes, I can make it official: expect to see Jordan again on YouTube .

That said, Jordan and Nawal are currently working hand in hand to finalize new formats in this direction, but it is such a key subject that I think I will make a separate article about it, and this article is already very long!

My taste for Build in Public

During my summer, I am very interested in Build in Public , this movement which consists of telling in detail the behind the scenes of one's company. I like the conversations in the comments which result from it, I like to exchange with you and I like to have your opinions .

But I hope that these contents can help other entrepreneurs to go through similar ordeals. Show them that they are not alone, especially when faced with the Angoisses du Soir. Show them that there is hope, always hope! Provoke in them thoughts like “if BonneGueule went through it, we can do it too” .

In recent months, I have met creators and entrepreneurs who were going through tough times, in their corner, with that feeling of solitude so characteristic of adversity. And each time I wanted to tell them “but you are not alone! And you should not feel guilty about feeling difficult!”. I sincerely hope that this type of content can help them .

For my part, creating “behind the scenes” content benefits me in two ways :

• They help me clarify my thoughts, exactly what is happening while I am writing this article
• They allow me to improve in the clarity and manner of telling our adventures (and I hope, in a pleasant way!)

And finally, telling the behind-the-scenes story of your company simply nourishes my values ​​of transparency, honesty and mutual assistance!

But before closing this part on our content, there remains one last “hot topic”: the other brands in our columns.

What about other brands?

I am faced with a dilemma where I would be very interested to have your opinion in comments: the treatment of other brands, namely the recommendations of other clothing brands .

BonneGueule was also built on this, it is a subject that crystallizes a good number of frustrations. We received a lot of comments complaining that we talked less about other brands and it is totally true. But I think that talking about other brands contributes to maintaining a certain confusion for readers who discover us, with questions like:

• But what is BonneGueule? Is it a media or a clothing brand?
• Besides, how come a clothing brand talks about other brands?
• Why do they make product selections and not include their clothes in them?
• Besides, if they include their clothes in their selections, it's a conflict of interest, right?
• But why don't they sell clothes from other brands that they recommend?

So, for the moment, we have chosen to talk about it again a little, but to focus on more niche brands, with even more passion, not widely distributed , like Kardo, Bode, or 18 East, to name just the first ones that come to mind.

The editorial team is no longer necessarily excited by the idea of ​​talking about yet another French brand with a quality/price ratio as its main argument (we've already done it... for 15 years). Of course, this kind of brand remains an essential step when starting your wardrobe, but they are already very present in all our previous content.

In short, after having explored many brands that are very focused on the quality/price ratio, we want to introduce you to stronger, more confidential, more inspiring, more high-end and more creative brands, it corresponds well to our personal desires and we believe that it is very complementary with the BonneGueule that we want to build .

Again, I really want your opinion in the comments , if there is a time when I need to hear from you on these 4 review articles, it is now!

Become a true finisher

I am the specialist in writing 80-90% of articles and not publishing them, because I put off the last 10% indefinitely. Often because I am very busy with launch or presentation articles.

(One option that has been suggested is to replace them with a presentation video).

This year, I want to change that, I want to take a week if necessary every three months where I just finish what I wrote in the last few months. And it's even something I'd like to do with other entrepreneurs, because writing content makes me feel good, quite simply. I need it.

So my challenge will be to finish everything I start, starting with a slightly unusual article that I've been 80% finished for 3 years: my gear list for going to the Boom Festival (yes, that's the kind of slightly more off-the-wall content that I want to allow myself).

After the contents in 2023, let's move on to our clothes planned for 2023!

Our clothes in 2023

Where to start on this vast subject? I am writing this sentence with the collection plan in front of me, it is the document that brings together all the releases planned for this year. And I hope that what I am going to reveal will not suffer too much from the throes of production…

I would like a more mature and at the same time more assertive collection, while keeping a core collection that can be worn every day, always with very beautiful materials .

The first thing that comes to mind is outerwear 2023. You will see that we are refining our offer a little more, with longer pieces, some of which are a little stronger, well helped by Arthur, a stylist who has already set up his own brand .

In 2022, our paisley summer shirt was a hit, and I got the message: you want stronger shirts for summer . So we have some nice things coming along that line.

For the rest, we will explore other cuts, other volumes and other colors. I won't say more, because I would like to have more prototypes before moving forward...

And finally, I want to go further in accessories, pieces with which we can have a lot of fun . And in this respect, I finally hope that 2023 will be the year of the first Cobra belt at BonneGueule (to those who are allergic to this buckle: there will be belts with a classic buckle, don't worry). I would also like more choice of gloves, with why more technical/unexpected things.

It's impossible not to talk about backpacks in 2023 because my personal story pushes me to do so ( if you haven't read the second part of the review, you'll understand better ) and also the incredible success of our collaboration with Bleu de Chauffe (on which I absolutely loved working and I found that we were a great complement).

So I would like to do a backpack collaboration again, but with a more outdoor tone (while keeping one foot in an urban universe) and explore even more technical fabrics . The real difficulty I have is finding brands to collaborate with that manufacture in Europe AND with know-how that allows me to realize the ideas I have in mind .

The devil is in the details…

On the quality side, I took the bull by the horns and asked the product department to provide me with a “production inspection budget”, because in our currently uncertain industry, we need to restore control and certainty . A lot of things are underway on this subject, and I dream of writing you an article “how we improved the quality of BonneGueule clothing” during the year, when everything is settled!

Also, all the fits are going to be reworked this year , I want to sit down in front of our cuts and ask myself if they are still current. I think of details like:

• the size of our collars,
• the width of our trouser legs,
• the waist height of our pants,
• the width of the sleeves of our shirts,
• the extent of our outerwear,
• etc,

Finally, there is another subject that I would like to explore this year: our visual signature , this little detail specific to BonneGueule that must appear.

I have a few ideas, and one concerns grosgrain, this type of fabric that we find in both haute couture, elegant and urban clothing, but also in military or outdoor clothing, which corresponds well to all of my influences, and my desire to build bridges between all these worlds.

It is also a solid weave, refined according to the context, and full of texture and relief, things that we love at BonneGueule.

And then there is the question of our new BonneGueule logo, which I really like and would like to bring to life . It is not about putting it in large letters on our t-shirts, but rather subtly: a little tone-on-tone embroidery for example, personalized buttons, etc.

And our women’s clothing?

The release of our women's clothing was really complicated, because the delays did not spare our summer collection, and some clothes arrived too late in the season .

This put a lot of stress on the whole team and in some ways diluted our efforts.

It is for these two reasons that we have reduced our references for this year, releasing fewer new products but focusing on each one of them . It is this same approach - doing less to do better - that gave birth to the Carpi and the Luciana.

As I said, and since we don't have sales, we still have some stock from last spring/summer, on products that I really like, and I would like to give them a real second chance, without delivery delays this time, rather than seeing them drowned in a flood of new products.

It's still early to tell what Nawal has planned, but now that our men's and women's content is easily separable, it's going to be easier for you to find them.

Because every assessment must end

And there you have it, 15,000 words later, we've reached the end of my 2022 review and my 2023 projects . You deplored the absence of a 2021 review article, I hope I've made up for it on that one !

First of all, I received a ton of messages thanking me for these review articles, and I thank you so much. Some have gone through trials far more difficult than the ones I am describing, and yet told me that my 2023 review helped them.

Thank you again for reassuring me, because as I have said several times, I have rarely been so nervous when publishing such personal articles .

I see myself again on my sofa, writing this voluminous report, with Alexandre Dana writing his, with the famous chocolate and hazelnut biscuits from Bio C Bon near my house that he loves so much.

Many times, I had tears in my eyes, saying to myself “it’s not possible, I’ll never be able to publish this, it’s too intimate, it’s too difficult”. But with Alex’s encouragement, then those of Jordan, Jérôme and Nawal, I did it .

From everything you've read, I haven't deleted anything, I haven't softened anything, and I sincerely hope that my story will help other entrepreneurs or push them to be vulnerable.

As for 2023, I don't know if it's the "article review" effect, but we recorded our best January ever! Touch wood, but I welcome this little helping hand from fate.

Because it's all about gratitude

And finally, I end this writing with an immense feeling of gratitude for having been so well surrounded to get through all this mess.

I immediately think of my team — even those who will never read these lines — who have been extremely resilient in some frankly complicated times, namely when a co-founder implodes because of a pacemaker that breaks down .

You have continued to bring BonneGueule and its values ​​(and even its passion) to life beyond all the adversity we have experienced in 2022. And you are enthusiastic about 2023, ready to write the future.

I also thank all my loved ones, my friends, my family, and even my more fleeting encounters, because you have continually shown me that despite the trials, life continues to be beautiful and rich.

Mention (once again) to Alexandre Dana, who made this 2022 review possible.

And as my friend Valentin, the great architect of my “hippisation” in August 2022, would say, “relationships are the fabric of life”. And I, who love beautiful materials and fabrics, could not be more convinced! So thank you all for having very nicely draped my year 2022.

Finally, because it's been a long time since I did it, I would like to finish the lyrics of Titanium, I didn't really have a choice, as you know why this song obsessed me and helped me this year:

Shot me down but I won't fall,

I am titanium.

Happy New Year 2023 to you!