Episode 16

A true globetrotter and expert in digital marketing, business development, and customer experience, Aurélie Labatut has taken the reins of Ohlala — a brand that describes itself as a distributor of love and happiness for riders and their horses.

Her mission: conquer new territories, break the codes, and disrupt the industry.

🛣️ Aurélie’s journey?

🏇🏻 Who is the Ohlala customer?

🔗 What does the partnership with Ekkia bring?

Before taking the helm of Ohlala in June 2025, you built your career in commerce and marketing. What has your journey been?

I’m originally from the Touraine region, but at 20 I moved to Bordeaux to study business at KEDGE Business School. Very quickly, I turned toward the international scene, which had always attracted me — particularly Asia — with my first internship experience across Malaysia, Thailand, and Japan. After graduating, I joined Ernst & Young Consulting. During three years there, I supported startups and SMEs in shaping their development strategies. I then had the opportunity to join a European program that allowed me to spend two years in Japan. When I returned, I started working independently before joining Cdiscount, which truly shaped my specialization in digital and customer experience. Since I’ve always had a strong desire to explore new horizons, after seven years leading acquisition and loyalty at Cdiscount, I spent two and a half years in Colombia. There, I helped professionalize the digital teams of a local subsidiary and launched Cdiscount websites in both Colombia and Ecuador. Back in France, I became Marketing and Sales Director for the multi-brand fashion website Monshowroom.com, before taking over Digital and Omnichannel Strategy at IKKS in 2019.

Both companies are headquartered near Cholet — just like Ohlala. Sometimes coincidences work out perfectly!

Joining the Ohlala adventure felt almost immediately obvious. The role ticked every box for me: it allowed me to remain close to my family, work in a professional environment connected to my passion for horse riding, and apply my expertise in digital marketing and business development to a brand aiming to expand internationally. I was also already an Ohlala customer myself. The mission Pascal entrusted me with was clear: consolidate the business following the founders’ departure and conquer new territories, with the goal of doubling revenue while preserving Ohlala’s DNA — its ability to innovate, break the rules, and disrupt the sector. Since its creation in 2018, Ohlala has stood out through highly innovative communication strategies, a strong proximity to its customers, and the attention it gives them. As the market has become more competitive and some players have copied our approach, it is now up to us to create new levers of differentiation. Today, Ohlala is a team of around fifteen people, working with 80 brands and handling more than 80,000 orders per year. Activity peaks occur during major commercial moments: sales periods, the brand’s anniversary in September, and especially Black Friday — an absolutely crazy time when we generate a full month’s revenue in just one day.

Can we sketch a typical equestrian equipment customer?

In reality, it is mostly a female customer — and often quite young. That’s why we make extensive use of their favorite communication channels, Instagram and TikTok. Our three communications managers publish between five and ten stories per day, host regular live sessions, organize photo and video shoots, and collaborate with influencers and external ambassadors. At the same time, we cannot forget the mothers. They are usually the ones paying for the orders, but they are also often riders themselves — sometimes returning to the saddle after several years away. What is striking in equestrian sports is how fashion has taken over the sector. A few decades ago, a rider would wear basic riding breeches, a velvet helmet, and simply use the saddle pad available at the riding club. Those days are long gone. Today, our customers can choose from more than 75,000 product references. The key challenge for the coming years is hyper-personalization — both in the products themselves (colors, customization, made-to-measure) and in the way they are sold. We don’t sell the same products to a horse owner, a dressage enthusiast, or a show jumping rider; nor to beginners versus experienced riders, or women versus men. It all comes back to having a deep understanding of our customers — a field I am particularly passionate about.

What does being part of Ekkia bring to Ohlala?

First and foremost, strong support in key operational areas such as HR, legal, and finance. This allows us to focus on our core expertise rather than technical matters where we have less added value. It also brings cost sharing, access to a network of brands, distributors, and manufacturers, and the opportunity to exchange experiences with the Padd network, which faces many of the same operational challenges as we do. Another major topic in recent months has been the rise of artificial intelligence. With the support of AI experts based in Haguenau, we launched a first proof of concept to automate product creation on our website. Each season we have thousands of products to upload. Now, the AI agent ingests supplier files, structures the data in the required format, downloads and renames product visuals, and writes product descriptions — all using the Ohlala tone of voice. All we have to do is verify the proposed information and upload it to our e-commerce platform. This represents an enormous time saving for the teams, allowing them to focus on higher-value tasks. We are currently working on another project to automate replenishment orders based on stock thresholds, customer demand, and supplier lead times.

What motto guides you daily?

“Move forward with passion, act with purpose.” What drives me every day is creating momentum, bringing people together, and moving projects forward with high standards — while always giving meaning to our actions and placing people at the heart of the collective.

Ohlala in one word?

Passion.

Ekkia in one word?

Agility and dynamism.