French Startup Turns Home Cooks Into Catering Entrepreneurs

Marie-Clarisse Bonzia arranges trays of cassava mini-quiches and mafé chicken skewers in a Paris kitchen, preparing for a corporate event that will showcase her Congolese-French fusion cuisine. Just a few years ago, she never imagined cooking would become her path to entrepreneurship.

Marie-Clarisse fled Congo during civil conflict so her daughter could receive medical treatment for a rare disease in France. Balancing an office job with constant hospital visits became impossible, forcing her to choose between her career and her child.

She chose her daughter, then chose to rebuild. After earning a professional culinary qualification, she launched Maison Kolia, her own catering company.

She's one of dozens of women entrepreneurs supported by Meet My Mama, a Paris foodtech startup founded in 2017 by three young graduates who saw incredible talent going unrecognized. Loubna Ksibi, Donia Souad Amamra, and Youssef Oudahman grew up watching skilled women remain economically invisible despite their culinary expertise.

The startup's name honors the Mères Lyonnaises, humble nineteenth-century cooks who left domestic service to open their own restaurants. Eugénie Brazier became the first female chef to earn three Michelin stars in 1933, training legends like Paul Bocuse.

Meet My Mama updates that legacy for modern, multicultural France. The company provides training through its Mama Academy, teaching culinary techniques, business management, and entrepreneurship while connecting women to high-end catering opportunities.

Milena Pecho joined after leaving financial auditing to pursue her passion. Born in France to Peruvian parents, she studied at a gastronomic school in Peru before founding her catering company, Wankas, which serves refined Nikkei ceviche and black quinoa with traditional huancaína cream.

She already had clients when she joined Meet My Mama, but the network helped her reach professional excellence. "They helped me gain efficiency and productivity, improve hygiene and quality standards," she says. "Now we're operating at the highest level."

The Ripple Effect

The women Meet My Mama supports come from Peru, Japan, Iceland, Sri Lanka, Morocco, Italy, Congo, and beyond, each bringing unique culinary traditions to French gastronomy. In an industry where 90 percent of leadership positions still go to men, the startup isn't just making room for women at the table.

Co-founder Amamra emphasizes the broader transformation: "We give the Mamas the power to have power, and then they'll pass some of that on to their children, to those around them." Economic independence ripples through families and communities, changing what's possible for the next generation.

Marie-Clarisse's bridge between Congo and France now feeds more than appetites—it feeds dreams, proving that sometimes the most powerful recipe is simply believing in someone's potential.