This essay is part of “Survive. Thrive. Evolve: How Two Years of the Pandemic Impacted Us Around the World,” a global HuffPost project featuring individuals writing about how their lives were affected after two years of the COVID-19 pandemic. The following piece originally appeared on HuffPost France. It has been translated into English and lightly edited for clarity.
When you meet me for the first time, you might do a double take when you see what I’m wearing. That’s because for the last year, I’ve been walking around Paris in an 18th-century dress to share my passion for history. I play the Marquise des Potins, a time traveler who offers quirky guided tours of Paris, revealing the human side of major characters from the history of France. There’s Voltaire’s lottery scam, the wacky techniques once used for reviving drowning victims, paintings with fake Egyptian mummies, libertine bets ... between all the money, debauchery, power and religion, it’s hard to choose which part of Parisian history to explore.
My goal is to dust off culture and show people they can have fun while learning history. The cool part is that tour guests aren’t just using their ears ― they go on an olfactory adventure, thanks to perfumes from niche Parisian creators that I pair with tour stops and that allow visitors to immerse themselves even further into the story.
But this wasn’t always my life. I made this dream come true during the coronavirus pandemic. When the first lockdown in Paris happened in 2020, I ― like lots of people ― had the opportunity to take a step back. There were no more evenings filled with dinners out or shows to see. No more weekend activities to do. All of a sudden, I faced the fact that what I had been doing with my life up until that point wasn’t considered “essential.”
At 28, I told myself that I was too young not to try living my dream, so I quit my job as chief of staff to the CEO of Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield to begin my new entrepreneurial adventure. I knew I was in for long hours, endless responsibilities and a lot of uncertainty, but I also knew it would all be worth it if I was working for myself.
After supporting management committees for two and a half years, I now knew how to see the big picture in any situation, and this skill serves me in my journey as an entrepreneur. Because tours have been offered in Paris for decades and there’s a lot of competition, I looked for a way to break the rules, and I found it by using costumes, technology and, of course, the unique inclusion of perfumes. My previous experience in digital marketing also taught me how to promote my tours and ensure I get great visibility. My old career also taught me how to automate some repetitive tasks and use timesaving software, which allows me to dedicate myself to what brings real added value to the business ― and do what I enjoy the most!
I’m aware that I’m lucky. Unlike many people who lost their jobs, their livelihoods, family members or friends or even their own lives, the lockdown turned out very well for me. I came out of them with a new business project and a fiance.
Aside from luck and privilege, there are a few things that allowed me to make my dream come true.
It’s easy to let yourself be swept along by the bustle of the city’s distractions when you’re a young professional living in Paris. When the lockdown took place, everything came to a halt and I had time to really think and reflect and focus on what truly mattered to me. Some people might think 28 is a bit old to do this kind of soul-searching, but I believe there is no right age and it’s never too late to reevaluate your life and what you want. And if you have the luxury of doing so, why not do it? Especially if it can help you avoid an existential crisis in the next 10 years!
After all of the schooling, the preparatory courses, graduation from a top program, a prestigious job that included responsibilities associated with a position close to a CEO, I felt like I had the life that many dream of — but I realized it wasn’t my dream. So I had to ask myself: What did I want to do with my life?
After taking stock of everything that I love, my idea started to form. I knew I wanted to create a business that would combine history, Paris, theater, costumes and immersion techniques that are typically found in escape rooms. At a time when people are seeking unique experiences at any cost, I sensed these types of guided visits would be a big hit and I figured someone must already be offering them.
After a bit of research, I discovered this wasn’t the case. So I made the leap and began to lay out everything it would take to do what I knew I wanted to do. Because of the pandemic, I had the time and the ability to change directions, and because of the hard work and skills I’d gained from my previous career, I was able to launch my own business.
And now, just six months after starting my company, I am getting ready to hire my first employee ― the Comtesse des Commères will soon join the Potins de Paris adventure!
It’s been a wild ride, but I couldn’t be more excited or grateful to have ended up where I am today.
For more information, visit potinsdeparis.fr.
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