Read news from:
Austria
SHARE
COPY LINK

JOBS

Meet the entrepreneur who wants to bring the best of French culture to Stockholm

"There's not a lot happening for French speakers in Stockholm at one specific place, and I want to provide that," Pauline Mialhe explains to The Local as we sit down at her co-working space in a grand old building which dates back to the 1700s in Stockholm's Old Town.

Published: 29 January 2018 06:33 CET
Meet the entrepreneur who wants to bring the best of French culture to Stockholm
Sacreblue founder Pauline Mialhe. Photo: Sacrebleu!

This article is available to Members of The Local. Read more about membership here.

Mialhe is the founder of Sacrebleu, which organizes French language cultural events and film screenings for francophones or francophiles in Stockholm, catering to both adults and kids.

Since relocating to the Swedish capital she has made sure to stay in touch with her homeland and native language, starting by teaching French in Stockholm's Saltsjöbaden, but it quickly became apparent that there were also bigger ideas that needed to be realized.

“I soon realized I had ideas for doing more than teaching grammar. I had been speaking with a lot of international parents who were a bit sad about not having enough fun with French for their kids. French is so cool – there's so much amazing French rap music, or French Youtube content, and those kids weren't getting that,” she recalls.

Mialhe decided that as no one else was making that side of French language culture accessible in Stockholm, she should be the one to do it. The entrepreneur is particularly passionate about giving a new generation of international kids access to a part of their culture which they are missing out on by being abroad.

“French rap for example is to me like poetry with rage. There's so much amazing stuff kids shouldn't miss, and a certain generation of young people here won't find out about it. So I wanted to bring all that amazingly cool stuff to them, to kids who miss that part of French culture.”

In the beginning it was a small endeavour, testing the water with small-scale screenings to see how people reacted. A nervy experience, but the feedback was good.

“I started with adults in Saltsjöbaden, then I moved on to barnfika for kids, which is a way for people to have a French moment with their kids. And French not just in the sense of the language, but French animators and directors.”

“It was so cool to be doing it, organising these screenings, which is something I really wanted to do. But I was also very stressed because I really wanted to be able to pull it off. So I thought, if five people come, great. Then in the end four times as many came. With the first one I was so sure no one would come. My boyfriend – who I have to thank, he's the best – told be it would be OK. He was right,” she laughs.


Photo: Sacrebleu!

By the time its first six months of its existence were over, Sacreblue had held 12 events. Along with barn fika and film screenings, Mialhe made sure to highlight another form she is particularly enthusiastic about: French language Youtube content.

“I want to show them the best stuff, in France we have so much Youtube content – history, biology, so much,” she notes. “And I'm hopefully going to work with a Swedish university to produce things in that area for young people learning French. If that happens I'll translate some Youtube stuff, because there's so much that's really good and funny.”

READ ALSO: Sweden is perfect fit for French fashionista

Though Mialhe loves French Youtube content, the gold standard is in her opinion a Swede: PewDiePie. Aware that he can be a divisive figure, she explains her admiration for the 28-year-old.

“He represents exactly what the possibilities with Youtube are. He has clickbaity titles, but he's actually making fun of the spirit of Youtube itself, in a self-aware way. Nothing is left to chance.”

“He's very smart. After watching too much content on Youtube, you can see the way he uses the trashy tropes of Youtubing in a deliberate way. He makes it awkward on purpose. For me it's smart to follow how he does things. He knows everything there is to know about how to use Youtube.”

Sacreblue is continuously evolving, and a recent development is the addition of workshops:

“In February I'll start a partnership with creative workshop Ateljé 4. So we start with a movie, then there's a workshop afterwards – it's a nice way to have fun with French and France that's not just grammar”.


Photo: Sacrebleu!

When The Local asks what her favourite of the events so far has been, the Sacrebleu creator has two particularly fond memories.

“The French Christmas party we did was great, so many people showed up, it was crazy. That was the first time I'd done anything in a partnership and it was amazing. Then the event I put on earlier in January showing films – a lot of people came and asked me to keep putting those things on, saying for example 'I get the same feeling as I did when I went to see films with my parents as a kid'. That's so inspiring – it's the best thing you can hear.”

READ ALSO: 'I saw a glaring gap and set up my own 3D printing business'

Looking to the future, Mialhe has a very clear idea about what her dream achievement with Sacrebleu would be: to create a one stop shop where people interested in French language culture can come and engage with it.

“The dream? To have a big building in Stockholm where we could have a French institute, a space to screen films, hold events, a library, a place you can play French videogames, a cafe, and a shop where startups from France could have popups for a month,” she reveals.

“If I could do that, have a French cultural space for people, where can show that there's also this young, living side to French culture, that would be incredible.”


Photo: Sacrebleu!

And reflecting on her time in Stockholm so far, Mialhe highlights the way the Swedish capital has given her a sense of freedom to pursue her ideas.

“I always think if you have an idea, you should do it. Worst case scenario it doesn't work. We've probably all worked in jobs we didn't like, couldn't focus on because we weren't into it. But in Paris it's not so easy to dream – you end up in those jobs, feeling stuck. Here in Stockholm, I feel more free – no one judges you, and you can do whatever you want.”

“Thinking that you would have changed the world if you'd only tried it is a much worse feeling than actually doing what you want to do, then seeing if it works or not. You have to just do it,” she concludes.

For members

READER INSIGHTS

How to find a job in Sweden: Five tips from those who’ve been there, done that

The Swedish job market poses unique challenges for newcomers. The Local's readers share their best tips for cracking the career code.

Published: 10 April 2024 11:32 CEST
Updated: 13 April 2024 15:50 CEST
How to find a job in Sweden: Five tips from those who've been there, done that

Network, network, network!

A statistic that often gets tossed around is that seven out of ten jobs in Sweden are obtained through personal connections, and there’s no doubt that a good network is crucial to your job hunt, making the labour market extra challenging for newcomers to the country.

In fact, networking was the main tip mentioned by The Local’s readers.

“The job market is quite hot in Sweden, and talent is in short supply. People hiring do not have a lot of time to find the right talent, and tips from friends, colleagues and former colleagues are the way to first, find out organisations are hiring, and secondly, get your CV on the short list,” said Kyle, a Canadian reader who works in innovation management in Gothenburg.

“If you are going for a major employer like Volvo, network gets you in the door, as HR does not have much to do with hiring… the hiring managers do all of it and have no time, due to the insane number of consensus meetings. If you are looking for smaller organisations, they have even less time to find people, and networking is their primary way to find talent,” he added.

NETWORKING IN SWEDEN:

Some of the networking tips readers mentioned were going to job fairs, getting an internship to help you establish connections in your preferred field, joining clubs (this could be anything from your local gardening association to meetups for coders, but focus on clubs that may be popular among people working in your chosen field), and drawing on your organic network of friends, neighbours and others.

Don’t neglect the groundwork

The saying “dress for the job you want, not the job you have” is getting worn out (and people may look at you funny if you turn up to interviews in a Batman suit), but there’s truth to the notion of making sure you know what you want – and preparing for it.

In other words, don’t wait for a job ad to appear before you start to customise your CV and figure out what skill set you need. Create your CV now so that you’re ready to tweak it to your dream job – you could even have a general look at job ads in your field to see what requirements are needed. And don’t forget to spruce up your LinkedIn profile so that it fits with your career goals.

“I believe that several factors contribute to successfully landing a desirable job in Sweden. It’s essential to prepare to meet the requirements beyond just having a university degree. Many individuals realise these requirements only after completing their studies when they start searching for a job, which can be too late,” said Adnan Aslam from Pakistan, who works as a food inspector.

“I recommend identifying the job advertisements for positions you aspire to hold in the future and then preparing for those requirements during your studies. For me, acquiring a basic level of proficiency in the Swedish language and obtaining a Swedish driving licence were crucial. I pursued these goals during my studies and was able to secure a desirable job before graduating,” he added.

READ ALSO:

Felipe Cabral even has a GPT assistant trained on his own CVs and old cover letters, and said the set-up only takes ten minutes if you already have your documents. “With that in place, you can give instructions like: Read this job description and create a tailored version of my CV and letter for it. (…) Remember to always review and ask it not to create data aside from your documents.”

Be flexible and ready to adapt

Moving to a new place inevitably means having to learn not just the practicalities such as how to write a CV or which websites to use to look for job openings, but also learning how to navigate a new culture with all its unspoken expectations.

Swedish workplaces are generally less hierarchical than many other countries, but that doesn’t mean you can say whatever you want whenever you want without anyone raising an eyebrow. Swedes are usually direct, but be careful of being too abrasive or boastful: raising your voice, even during a spirited argument, or banging your own drum to show off your skills may not go down well.

“Talk, deliberate, complain like a Swede and you’ll come across like you know what the job entails, so your trustworthiness increases,” said an Indian data analyst who preferred to remain anonymous.

“Office politics are just as strong in Sweden as anywhere else. The flat hierarchy is deceiving as social hierarchy is enforced quite a bit in that lack of formal hierarchy. Take your time in learning these dynamics wherever you work before revealing your talent and capabilities. Expect those internal politics to happen, and they won’t hurt so much when they do,” said Kyle, the Canadian reader in Gothenburg.

This article about Swedish office politics may be useful.

Stay true to yourself

Adapting to your surroundings is one thing. Completely changing who you are is another.

For one thing, your happiness is as important as your career progression, and for another, your foreignness need not be an impediment: it’s also a skill that sets you apart from the rest. It means you have unique experience, and also, in the right setting, provides an opportunity to sometimes violate those social rules we mentioned above, because people assume you will, anyway.

“Trust is key. Build trust in your network, work with integrity. It’s OK to violate jantelagen if you are maintaining integrity. Sometimes your outsider and more honest/open opinion will burn bridges, especially those that may feel threatened by talent. But it will build trust with other colleagues who see it as brave and more trustworthy to work with,” said Kyle from Canada.

Hunker down for the long haul

We don’t want to scare you, because there are plenty of examples of people who quickly find their dream job in Sweden and settle into their new workplace, enjoying perks such as long summer holidays, generous parental leave and the famous work-life balance.

But if you do find it tougher than you expected: know that you’re not alone.

Several readers who responded to the survey said they were still trying to find a job in Sweden.

“I found jobs all over Europe but not here. They say they have a lack of experienced senior engineers but the don’t seem to be doing much to solve this,” said a Brazilian in Gothenburg.

A reader from Bangladesh said she was “at a loss” as to how to make a career change from her current AI role in Stockholm, despite many years of experience as an IT project manager.

“Over the past 18 months, I’ve submitted over 600 applications to various organisations. Unfortunately, despite being overqualified for some positions, I’ve faced rejections at every turn, from both large and small companies. The job market here, especially for foreign-born women, feels overwhelmingly challenging,” she said, adding that the struggle had impacted her mental health.

The Local has on several occasions reported on foreign residents’ struggle to get a foot on the Swedish job ladder, with many facing hurdles such as employers’ unfamiliarity with international degrees, discrimination, or a lack of network that can provide paths into a company.

So during the job hunt, don’t forget to care for yourself. Share your concerns with fellow job-seekers, ask for help and join networking groups – this is good not just for creating new contacts, but also in terms of your social well-being and meeting people who are in a similar situation.

And finally, as one British reader in Stockholm advised, keep looking: “Be open-minded with the opportunities that present themselves. It isn’t an easy market to enter and doesn’t feel inclusive.” But he added, “don’t give up”.

SHOW COMMENTS