Confusion between letters, difficulty finding one’s way in time and space… These are some of the symptoms of dyslexia. This disease, which seriously handicaps reading and writing, affects between 8 and 10% of the world’s population. “A few years ago, Albert Le Floch and Guy Ropars, researchers in Rennes, discovered that patients do not have a dominant eye, which disrupts reading. The images sent by the two eyes arrive at the same time and are superimposed, and the brain has difficulty processing them. explains Bertrand Decours, general director of Lili for Life.
The two researchers then developed solutions to correct this problem.. Their work was rewarded, in 2020, with the prize from the National Academy of Medicine. Frédéric Granotier, founder and director of Lili for life, meets Albert Le Floch and Guy Ropars who agree to allow him to manufacture and market lamps using their work. This is how the start-up, based in Rouen, was launched in September 2020 and filed a global patent. Regarding glasses intended for dyslexic people, Atol is chosen for its marketing.
Autonomous, foldable, easily transportable
“Our Lili lamp uses a strobe light which creates a temporal shift in perception between the eyes”,develops Bertrand Decours who joined the start-up in 2022. Reading thus becomes more fluid and less tiring. To adapt to its user, the intensity and frequency of the flashes, invisible to the naked eye, can be configured using an application. The operation only takes a few minutes. The frequency is between 60 and 120 Hz, which should not cause photosensitive epileptic seizures. Foldable and autonomous for more than seven hours, Lili is transportable. “It can be used very easily in class,” note Bertrand Decorus.
“80% of people with dyslexia see an improvement. But for 20% it doesn’t work, without knowing why, notes, however, the general director. That’s why we always offer a 45-day free trial.” The company, which has around ten employees, has sold around 3,000 lamps which are manufactured in France. Marketing is mainly done on the website but also via a network of distributors, including, in particular, the “Ecouter voir” opticians and Fnac, Darty, Boulanger.
A taboo in business
But Lili for life doesn’t stop there. “We found that many people are ashamed of their dyslexia and hide it, for example, in their professional environment,” regrets Bertrand Decours. If in certain countries, people with dyslexia are seen as an asset because they process information differently, in France the subject remains taboo. “This is why we carry out interventions in companies on this subject” the general manager bounced back. Conferences and workshops are offered.
It is about raising awareness among employees, explaining what a person suffering from this illness can bring but also showing how to adapt their position and how to supervise them. “This frees up speech and should allow an employee to say that they are concerned,” notes Bertrand Decours. It is thanks to this approach that the Crédit Agricole group has raised awareness among its employees and adopted the Lili lamp within some of its subsidiaries and regional banks.
Currently, the start-up is working to develop distribution networks abroad. It also hopes to increase partnerships with mutual health insurance companies, like the one established with the Mutuale mutual insurance company which allows its members, until December 11, to benefit from a preferential price. To make itself known, the start-up is increasing its participation in trade shows: “Made In France”, CES in Las Vegas… the future looks promising for Lili for life.
For Aletheia Press, Laetitia Brémont
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