Valentin Dufour co-founded Essembl, the AI fashion app with 1 million downloads, proving creativity and curiosity can outpace formal training. He never studied business yet launched Essembl in 2024, offering personalised outfit recommendations and achieving rapid growth with no marketing spend.
“My first real job was in marketing for a group of clothing stores,” he recalls. His manager introduced him to creative storytelling, which shaped his approach. A fashion fan who struggled to pick outfits, he teamed up with his tech entrepreneur brother to build a platform where users upload their clothes and receive ideas on how to pair them, “helping people use tech to feel better in their clothes and buy more consciously, not just more.”
Essembl graduated from Fit 4 Start, reached the top 10 of the 2025 Startup World Cup and worked with brands including Uniqlo Benelux. Imposter syndrome was his biggest hurdle. “I didn’t go to business school, I just learned everything by doing,” he says.
“Getting recognised by Forbes now makes me see that you don’t need a perfect background to build something great.” He credits his multicultural Luxembourg upbringing for driving him to create work that feels “human, fun, and personal.” His aim: “I want to encourage a mindset of staying curious, trying new things, and learning to ride the wave of change instead of resisting it.”
This article was published in the 8th edition of Forbes Luxembourg.
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