‘Digital technology is necessary to accelerate the ecological and social transitions. Our aim is to establish a space where individuals can engage in discussions and debates on these matters.’

Interview with Marion Graeffly, director and co-founder of Telecoop

For this new edition of Both, we welcome Marion Graeffly, co-founder and CEO of Telecoop, a cooperative that offers mobile packages for both individuals and businesses. What is the innovation behind it? Telecoop stands out as an ecological and social cooperative telecom operator by helping consumers to reduce the ecological footprint of their mobile consumption and to take back the power over their mobile spendings.

After becoming aware of the current environmental and social issues, Marion decided to take the plunge and followed the On Purpose career transition program. It resulted for her in a better understanding of the levers of action of the Social and Solidarity Economy sector and in the desire to have a positive impact on society by fighting mass consumption.

Her solution: build an independent economic model that addresses societal and environmental issues as well as wealth and power sharing.

Her goal: give power back to citizens.

Marion, could you explain the vision behind the Telecoop cooperative?

The cooperative, particularly the SCIC (Société coopérative d’intérêt collectif), promotes the gathering of all stakeholders involved in a specific service. In my opinion, this represents a vision for the future, illustrating how we can empower individuals to make choices and actively contribute to solving both personal and broader societal issues. A notable example is the Citizens' Climate Convention, which coincided with our work on Telecoop and demonstrated the feasibility of this approach. It was inspiring to witness individuals from diverse backgrounds engaging with these issues, particularly in the telecommunications field. The cooperative facilitates accessibility and transparency in sectors like telecommunications, digital technology, and finance, where complexity often prevails. Joining Telecoop and becoming a member as well as a shareholder is as easy as a few clicks. Our objective is to raise awareness so that everyone can make well-informed consumption decisions while also taking on the responsibility of being a shareholder. By doing so and reclaiming our stake, we foster a better way of living together and a stronger sense of shared interest.

From a business point of view, what differentiates you from traditional players?

Telecoop has taken a step back to create an alternative approach to the digital realm, which is crucially important. It is necessary for building an effective ecological and social transition. However, it is important to note that we are currently entering a phase dominated by a technocratic and consumerist mindset. Nevertheless, it is worth acknowledging that the digital sphere plays a significant role as the primary source of information regarding the ecological transition. In fact, 80% of French individuals claim to have gained awareness about the transition through the internet, which is truly remarkable. Similarly, remote working offers a valuable means of decarbonizing our economy by enabling individuals to stay at home instead of commuting by car.

Our mobile service packages provide pragmatic solutions to address these challenges through three key differentiating factors:

1. Firstly, we encourage our subscribers to prolong the use of their current mobile phones as much as possible, recognizing that the environmental impact of smartphones primarily stems from their manufacturing process. Therefore, the best phone is the one you already possess.

2. Secondly, our customer service department operates with a distinct objective. Rather than being solely focused on sales, our customer service team is dedicated to supporting individuals in their digital usage. We prioritize raising awareness, particularly considering that one in five people in France experiences the digital divide.

3. Lastly, transparency is of utmost importance to us. Our offers are commitment-free, and our General Terms and Conditions of Sale are easily accessible with just one click on our website—an uncommon practice among other service providers.

So the cooperative is also a means of political engagement?

Indeed, but let's delve into the concept from a Greek perspective. Returning to the notion of polis, it signifies "we make city." Our aim is to establish a space, a collective where individuals can engage in discussions and debates on these matters. Telecoop, for instance, was established during the launch of 5G. At the time, this was deeply unsettling because we questioned where citizens could have a meaningful dialogue if the political authorities did not provide the opportunity for such a debate. Given the controversy surrounding its launch, it becomes crucial to create platforms for discussing 5G, regardless of one's stance on the matter. Beyond that, we advocate in our own unique way by constructing a sustainable economic model that promotes equitable distribution of wealth and value. Our objective is not solely to advocate for change, but to demonstrate that it is achievable and that the telecommunications sector can undergo transformation. The extent of our impact is also measured by our ability to persuade other stakeholders to adopt alternative approaches.

How does the cooperative allow us to find this balance between growth and mission?

Certainly, adhering to the conventional principles of growth and development is necessary. We have experienced tremendous growth, tripling our turnover within a year, and we are on the verge of surpassing one million euros in less than three years of existence. We operate within these rules because they are essential for our survival. Therefore, we must increase our user base as it is the key to making a significant impact and driving change within the sector. We do not oppose the traditional rules of development. What we emphasize is that the profits we generate will be reinvested in a manner that serves the ecological and social transition, as explicitly stated in our statutes, which will remain unchanged. This point is of utmost importance and aligns with the pressing regulatory concerns. We can observe this trend with mission-driven companies and even with the sudden departure of Emmanuel Faber from Danone, which greatly surprised me. It demonstrates that even if you are a strong and respected leader, you can be asked to leave abruptly when you decide to embark on a profound transition for your company. This underscores the significance of statutes. Presently, the mandate of managers is tied to achieving economic outcomes. By altering these regulations, we can facilitate the long-term evolution of companies.

What are your metrics? What do you share with your members?

We share everything, it's completely transparent. The only thing we cannot share is the content of our negotiations with suppliers, due to the particular sector we operate in. Everything else is accessible: remuneration, use of our revenues, budgets, etc.

As far as our impact is concerned, we measure two main families of KPIs:

• Environmental KPIs with the avoided carbon cost, i.e. CO2 that is not emitted, thanks to the extension of our subscribers’ phones life. On average, our customers keep their smartphones for 3.7 years, compared to a market average of 2.5 years. Most of them are already aware of this issue but we go further by giving them lots of information to be able to keep their phones longer. Moreover, we measure CO2 avoided thanks to the decrease of mobile data consumption. In 2022, it represents about 55 tons of CO2 avoided with a fleet of 6,000 subscribers. Imagine what we can achieve if we continue to grow rapidly! So far, we only take into account CO2 emissions avoided, but we could also measure the impact on rare metals used in smartphones, as well as our social impact in terms of well-being: less time spent on your phone, less dependencies, and addiction phenomena, etc.

• Societal KPIs with our commitment to gender equality. Our management team comprises 5 women out of 7 members. We are still wondering how to develop female shareholding, but we try to have role models in the structure to inspire women to get involved and be part of our movement.

Like the Emmaus Label but also Enercoop, etc., Telecoop is part of the Licoornes. Can you tell us more about this association of cooperatives?

We started with an observation: a lot of citizens are trying to get involved but are confused by greenwashing messages, carbon offsetting, etc. and are unable to distinguish what is truly impactful from what is not. We witnessed how the controversy surrounding the High Environmental Value label undermined the credibility of organic products, caused confusion and raised important concerns. However, Telecoop, a cooperative that is dedicated to fair distribution of wealth and promoting ecological and social transition, is developing a unique model where profits are channeled towards supporting sustainability and sobriety. The goal is to make people aware that they have the option to consume exclusively from SCIC, and to promote these alternatives to the public.

Internally, financing cooperatives faces a major challenge as these industries are relatively unknown to traditional investment and even impact funds. It is crucial to increase visibility and demonstrate the effectiveness and scalability of our solutions, which have a significant impact. To scale up, we need funding, which is a critical issue. By shifting the focus towards sustainability, we can address the ecological and social issues that are affecting life on Earth.