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Elisa EVRARD ORDONEZ, a Master’s student in the Grande École Program at IÉSEG, launched Dyane Paris in March 2026. This premium cocktail brand offers luxury establishments ready-to-serve cocktails packaged inside French-made porcelain artworks. Balancing artisanal production, business strategy, a CEO’s schedule, and classes at IÉSEG, Elisa shares her journey.

Could you introduce Dyane Paris and tell us where the project stands today?

Dyane Paris is a premium cocktail brand offering ultra-luxury RTD (ready-to-drink) cocktails packaged inside… works of art! These are decorative porcelain bottles shaped like statuettes, entirely hand-painted and 100% made in France.

The idea is to offer luxury bars, hotels, and restaurants a high-end alternative to standard pre-mixed cocktails, which can sometimes—wrongly—have a negative connotation for customers. Our porcelain bottle becomes a decorative piece that can be proudly displayed on a bar counter, eliminating any stigma often associated with pre-batch formats. Each recipe is crafted with premium, locally sourced ingredients and infused in oak barrels. We are talking about exceptional, 28% ABV (alcohol by volume) cocktails designed specifically for the ultra-luxury segment.

We officially launched the brand on March 8, 2026. We are currently in our launch phase, having just activated our digital presence across social media and our website. From March to September, our main goal is to build visibility through partnerships, getting listed by luxury hotel groups, and customer acquisition.

In practical terms, how is the product made?

We produce our bottles in the Vaucluse region, near Avignon. We work with a workshop that casts the bottles from molds and paints them by hand. The distillery is located just 500 meters away, allowing us to maintain a very short supply chain.

For the recipes, I work with Julien DUCRUET, an exceptional distiller. We pitch an inspiration to him—a Moscow Mule, for example—and he recreates the recipe using premium French ingredients, sourcing directly from local farmers. The base of our cocktails is a wine spirit made from grapes grown around Bordeaux, distilled in a copper still to obtain a neutral, premium base.

We then infuse this spirit in oak barrels for several days or even weeks with the star ingredient of the cocktail. For our Pornstar Martini, it’s vanilla; for our Basil Smash, it’s basil. We always choose an ingredient that sits at the very heart of the recipe.

What is the development and validation process for the recipes?

It’s a very long process actually! First, the recipe has to satisfy the distiller, and then I approve it on my end. Next, we always test a sample with about 50 people from Julien’s network in the Avignon region. If we get 47 “yes” votes out of 50, we validate it. If it falls below 45, back to square one. Our first two recipes, at 28% ABV, took us six months of hard work, back-and-forth adjustments, and testing. I used that time to conduct market research concurrently, visiting hoteliers and head bartenders to gather their feedback.

How do you connect your entrepreneurial project with your studies at IÉSEG?

I am specializing in a Master’s in Negotiation, so everything related to sales, negotiation techniques, and strategy is highly relevant. It’s fascinating to see how theory applies directly to daily business operations. When meeting with hotels and restaurants, we genuinely put all of it into practice. For me, IÉSEG provides a solid foundation that must be complemented by field experience. Passing a class is great, but if you don’t apply it, you forget it. We also have professors with incredible backgrounds; when you talk to them, you realize they are a true goldmine of knowledge.

IÉSEG also invests a lot of resources into supporting entrepreneurs. There is an incubator, very supportive coaches, networking opportunities, and even classes where student teams work on your project to pitch marketing ideas. When you have your head down in the day-to-day operations, having that outside perspective is invaluable. Plus, my “student-entrepreneur” status gives me real flexibility with my schedule, thanks to very understanding professors.

What does a typical day look like for you right now?

I wake up around 6:30 or 7:00 AM. I always start by dropping by the workshop to check on production: where we stand with the recipes and the creation of the porcelain bottles. This is crucial for giving clients accurate delivery timelines. After that, it’s a lot of emails, prospecting, and networking—attending gallery openings, evening events, and gatherings where we can introduce ourselves and connect with people. And there is always at least one tasting appointment at a hotel or restaurant, which is a great way to bring in new clients.

Do you have any advice for a student looking to dive into entrepreneurship?

Take the time beforehand to truly consider if it’s worth the ride. Entrepreneurship will change your life: the way you sleep, your relationships, your daily routine. If you aren’t ready to put your life “on hold” for a few years, it’s better not to go into it half-heartedly. Doing things halfway just doesn’t work. You need to analyze the impact it will have on your family, friends, and love life, and then go all in once you are fully convinced. And as the saying goes: “Perfect is the enemy of good.” At some point, you just have to launch, even if the product or the idea isn’t flawless yet!